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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 




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HUNNICUTT'S 

AGRICULTURE 



FOR THE 



COMMON SCHOOLS 



BY 



JAMES B. H U N N I C U T T 

Former Editor ''The Southern Cultivator" 



REVISED BY 



R.'J. H. De LOACH 

Director Georgia Experiment Station 

and formerly 

Professor Cotton Industry, Georgia Slate A. <t M. College 



THE CULTIVATOR PUBLISHING COMPANY 

publishers of 

"The Southern Cultivator" 

Atlanta, Ga. 

1913 



-^^ 



'i\-< 



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Copyright, 1903, by James B. Hunnicutt 
Copyright, 1900, by Cultivator Publishing Co. 
Copyright, 1913, by Cultivator Publishing Co. 



The Franklin Printing Company 

incorporated 

Louisville, Kentucky 

1913 



isT • h ./ 



PREFACE 

The suhject of Agnculture is receiving much 
attenlioii at the present hy e(hicators in all parts 
of the workl, and is l)eini>' incorporated into all of 
our school curricula. In order to meet the increas- 
ing demands for information on the subject, 
teachers are being forced to give time and atten- 
tion to it in order to give the instruction in a sub- 
ject that is required l\v law in most of the States. 
It is important therefore that a text book on the 
elementary principles of Agriculture should have 
timely suggestions on how to teach and use 
material for teaching the subject as well as to con- 
tain a great mass of information. Most of us can. 
give information on agricultural topics, but there 
are a very few who can successfully tell how to 
teach it and make a book interesting enough to 
attract pupils to the study. Most of them study 
it because they are required to do so, as many of 
our teachers are teaching it. This ought not so to 
be. It is an interesting as well as a useful study, 
and the author of a text should prove this beyond 
the questioning of the most pedantic teacher. 

The first requisite for such a text it seems 
should be an easy familiar style, short i)ithy para- 
graphs, and conversational suggestions. The book 
should talk with the teacher and pupils — figura- 
tively speaking — rather than contain long dis- 
courses on Agricultural subjects. Every chapter 
in such a book should make the teacher wish to 



Vi PREFACE 

have pupils experiment with plants and the soil, 
or animals, and then suggest just how such ex- 
periments can be conducted in any school, with a 
minimum cost, but with the one purpose of de- 
veloping the subject as a trade, profession or art, 
worthy of the best talent in the land. 

Hunnicutt's Agriculture for the Common 
Schools, written by Dr. J. B. Hunnicutt, is a 
pioneer in its particular field, and is well known to 
thousands of farmers and teachers in the Southern 
States. It was prepared with a view to its use by 
farmers and general readers as well as schools; 
special attention was given to an exposition rather 
than a presentation of the subject; more infor- 
mation about the problems of the farm and the 
farmer, and less attention to methods of presen- 
tation of the subject to the young mind. The 
book is a classic on account of its pure diction and 
plain simple Anglo-Saxon words and is worthy of 
a place in any library. The author had be^n a 
public speaker for many years and had developed 
a style that is quite pleasing. 

The present edition of the book is almost 
entirely re-written, with a view to giving definite 
instruction on class-room work in Agriculture, to 
indicate how and where to find material with 
which to teach the subject, and lastly how to use 
this material to the best advantage. Most of the 
elementary books and many of the advanced 
treatises on the su})ject of Agriculture have been 
consulted, for which acknowledgments are here 
made. R. J. H. DELf)ACH. 

Athens, Ga., 1913. 



INTRODUCTION 

Plow deep and on a level. 
In peace and plenty revel. 

That is science as well as rhyme. Pulverize the 
soil and get pay for your toil. The farmer feeds 
and clothes the millions. To help him do this with 
pleasure and profit is the mission of this little book. 
Every farmer in the South should have this helper 
at hand and learn to take more pride in being a 
farmer. 

The first thing, except one, that we remember 
in this world, we shouldered our hoe and marched 
off to the cotton field. So we were taught to plow 
and to hoe, to reap and to mow, and always keep 
up with our row. Through life we have continued 
to study soil and plants. We have found pleasure 
and profit in learning how to make the soil grow 
good crops. 

Now, in response to a thousand requests, we 
have tried to tell how to do this. 

But if farming ever reaches the place among 
other callings which it should have, it will be when 
we have taught our children its beaut}^ and its rank 
in the schoolroom. Agriculture should be taught 
in every school. 

We have made it so simple that any teacher can 
use this book, even if entirely ignorant of the prin- 
ciples of Agriculture or the practices of farming. 

We tliink the student who has studied this 
book will see the world with different eyes. 

City life has been absorbing the brain and 
beauty of the country. And it needs it. But we 



VIII INTRODUCTION 

can not afford to spare so much of our young 
manhood and womanhood as we have been doing. 
We must keep the young folks on the farm. 

Many books have been written on Agricul- 
ture, but they are all more or less treatises on 
botany and agricultural chemistry. We have 
avoided this channel. While we adhere strictly to 
scientific truth, we have used plain language. 
Technical terms have been left out. We have 
tried to write so that every child could under- 
stand. How we have succeeded we must leave 
you to judge. Industrial education is the demand 
of the day. Agriculture is the largest and most 
important of the industries. Heretofore it has 
been at the bottom. Let us now see that it is 
placed at the top. To do this, we must educate 
the farmers. 

The world will respect brain. If we make our- 
selves the equals in intellect of those in other call- 
ings, then we will be as much respected, and not 
until then. 

We need as much skill to grow plants as does 
the physician to heal the sick, or the lawyer to 
clear criminals. 

It takes as much brain to run a four-horse 
farm as to run a bank or a railroad. The farmer 
carries all. 

If the farmer fails 

And can not buy, 
Then the merchant's goods 

On his shelf must lie. 

If the farmer fails 

And has nothing to sell, 
Then the banker's account 

Ceases to swell. 



INTRODUCTION IX 



If the farmer fails 

And has nothing to ship, 
The railway train 

Makes an empty trip. 

If the farmer fails — 

Hasn't the money he ought, 
Then the lawyer's fee 

Drops down a naught. 

If the farmer fails 

And hasn't the bills. 
Then the doctor 

Ceases to roll his pills. 

If the farmer fails 

And can not pay, 
The school teacher's account 

Waits another day. 

If the farmer fails, 

As sometimes fail he must. 
The world's business lags 

And the wheels o" commerce rust 

But if the farmer succeeds. 

As succeed he should. 
We all look happy 

And we all feel good. 

For upon our broad shoulders. 

All the rest do lie. 
And sometimes the pile 

Gets very, very high. 



Success to the farmer. 
Atlanta, Ga., 1903. James B. Hunnicutt. 



X INTRODUCTION 

List of Apparatus. — In order to teach Agri- 
culture successfully teachers must have certain 
material with which to carry the lessons home to 
the students. The best apparatus for this purpose 
is that which can be made at home and at school, 
and out of the home-made material. Make what- 
ever you can without buying anything. The fol- 
lowing is a suggested list, and it is hoped that most 
of the material can be secured: 

100 feet dressed lumber in sizes 1x3, 1x8, and 2x4. 5 pounds 6d nails. 
25 germinating pots, 6 in. at top by 5 in. at bottom — may be made out of lumber. 
6 flower pots of size to suit plants — may be made at school. 
1 set garden tools, inclufiing small hand plow. 
12 soil pans. 
6 150mm evaporating dishes. 

1 small drying oven. 
4 alcohol lamps. 

2 thermometers. 

1 small spray outfit. 
1 pair pruning shears. 
12 six ounce bottles with cork stoppers. 

3 sixteen ounce bottles with cork stoppers. 
1 mortar and pestle, medium size. 

1 small geologist's hammer. 
12 packages red litmus paper. 
12 packages blue litmus paper. 
12 ten-inch white crockery plates. 
12 plain straight lamp chimneys. 
12 common glass tumblers. 

2 one-gallon glass pitchers. 
10 pipettes, lOcc. 

10 cylinder measures, 25cc. 

10 cylinder measures, lOOcc. 

10 cylinder measures, 500cc. 

2 scales, accurate, one measuring from grains to grams, the other tenth ounces up 

to ten pounds. 

Of course some schools will not be able to get all 
these utensils, but it may well be said that if the 
subject is to be taught successfully teachers will 
naturally resort to such material as found in the 
above list that they may the more easily impress 
the various lessons outlined in this little volume. 



CONTENTS 



Page 

Agriculture Man's Chief Pursuit . . - - 1 

Agriculture as a Science 4 

History of Agricitlture 7 

I The Soil 11 

II Formation of Soils -- 14 

III Soil Elements --------- 16 

IV Kinds of Soils 18 

V Water Holding Capacity of Soils - - - - 22 

VI How Soils are Made to Hold Water Longer - - 26 

VII The Problem of Soil Temperature - - - - 28 

VIII Effect of Lime on Soils - - - - - - -31 

IX Soil Drainage 34 

X Irrigation --.--..---38 

XI The Bealtty of the Soil ...... 43 

XII Possession of the Soil ..--.--47 

XIII Tilling the Soil -- 51 

XIV Further Studies on Cultivation 57 

XV Farm Implements 61 

XVI The Plant 73 

XVII The Plant; Stems, Leaves and Flowers - - - 79 

XVI II Manures and Fertilizers - - - - - - 83 

XIX Commercial Fertilizeijs 90 

XX The Proper Use of Manures and Fertilizers - - 97 

XXI Compounding Fertilizer Formulas - . . . 108 

XXII Some Outdoor Exercises with Fertilizers - - - 112 

XXIII Planting or Seeding - - 116 

XXIV The Cultivation OF the Soil 121 



XII 



CONTENTS 



Page 

XXV The Harvest Time -------- 128 

XXVI Crop Rotation - - - 139 

XXVII Limit of Production of Farm Crops - . - 145 

XXVIII Practical Lessons in Plant Breeding - - - - 155 

XXIX Truck Farming - . . . 163 

XXX Special Crops --------- 171 

XXXI Fruit Culture --------- 175 

XXXII Crop Pests ---------- 184 

XXXIII Farm Animals 195 

XXXIV Dairy Husbandry for the Farm ----- 205 
XXXV Poultry for the Farms ------ 217 

XXXVI School Gardening -------- 225 

XXXVII Nature Study in the Common Schools - - - 237 

XXXVIII Bird Life - - - - 245 

XXXIX Co-Operation in Agricultural Work - - - 253 

XL The Farmer's Opportunity ------- 269 

Useful Tables --------- 276 




BOB WHITE HE HELPS THE I'ARMER FIGHT INSECT PESTS. 

— Photo Courlay DuPom Pcioder Co. 



Hunnicutt's Agriculture 

FOR THE 

Common Schools 



Revised and Rewritten by R. J. H. DeLoach 



AGRICULTURE MAN'S CHIEF PURSUIT. 




Agriculture is the noblest pur- 
suit of man. Before he fell, 
Adam dressed 
the Garden of 
Eden. Partak- 
ing of forbid- 
den fruit was 
the cause of the 
The sentence pronounced 
upon fallen man w^as that "in 
the sweat of thy face shalt thou 
eat bread." The sentence pro- 
nounced upon the ground was 
that "thorns and thistles shall 
it bring forth to thee." The re- 
sult of these two sentences re- 
mains in full force to this day. 
The evil growth is spontaneous. The good 
must be cultivated, and from this cultivation all 
the race must eat their bread. This means that 



2 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

we can not live without cultivating the ground. 
We must destroy evil and useless plants and keep 
good and innocent plants. The work necessary 
to do this is called Agriculture, which word sig- 
nifies tilling or cultivating the field. 

All other pursuits, callings and professions 
among men grow out of the necessities of the agri- 
culturist, and are largely dependent upon him for 
their support. The farmer needed tools with 
which to cultivate his crops, hence the blacksmith 
came into being. He needed houses, and thus 
called for the carpenter's skill. The blacksmith 
and carpenter needed iron and steel, hence the 
miner was called for. The farmer needed schools 
for his children, that they might not grow up in 
ignorance, and thus called forth the teacher. His 
religious wants called for the preacher, and his 
legal rights demanded government and laws, and 
hence lawyers, judges and officers of all ranks 
came in due time to serve the farmer's necessi- 
ties. Disease called for the physician, and in- 
creased trade called for traders and transporta- 
tion, and all the mechanism of banking and com- 
merce has sprung into existence primarily to serve 
the wants and wishes of the tiller of the soil. 

Successive generations have multiplied these. 
Science, art and invention have contributed to 
the rapid development of society, and now we see 
a vast, complex civilization dependent upon min- 
ing, manufacture and agriculture for support. 

Agriculture is easily the chief of these three, 
because we can not live without bread, and bread 
grows from the ground. "The king himself is fed 



AGRICULTURE MANS CHIEF PURSIJIT 3 

from the field." No amount of education, learn- 
ing, science, invention, industry, or skill can do 
away with the necessity for cultivating the ground. 
The more these increase and flourisli, the greater 
the need for the products of the farm. They only 
increase the number of non-producers to be clothed, 
fed and sustained by the cultivators of the soil. 
The farmer nuist feed himself and his family as 
well as all these others; so we see he is the most 
useful man of all. His calling, pursuit or profes- 
sion is therefore the most useful of all professions. 
If this is true, it should be considered the most 
honorable, but for many reasons it is not so con- 
sidered. These reasons we shall examine later on, 
when you will be prepared to understand them 
better. INIost young people and many older peo- 
ple think it is more desirable to be a professional 
man, such as a physician, merchant, banker, law- 
yer, or the like, than to be a laboring man, and 
many prefer to labor at anything in the shade 
rather than in the sunshine. We have thus come 
to look upon farming as the least honorable of all 
pursuits. The chief reason for this is the fact 
that we have taught our educated children to go 
into other pursuits, and the uneducated, or less 
educated, to go to the farm. 

Brain controls muscle. Men will respect brain. 
The pursuit or profession enjoying the highest 
education will be the most honored. In the past 
Agriculture has not been taught in the common 
schools. . It is now coming to be generally taught, 
and this book will try to help in bringing about 
this change. 



4 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

Agriculture as a Science. — God has made this 
world by law. He has so arranged everything in 
it, both in the moral and physical universe, that 
there are no accidents. All things continue to 
exist by definite, fixed laws. 

Science is what man knows about God's laws. 
Chemist 7"y is what we know about the laws that 
control the movements and existence of the ulti- 
mate minute atoms and molecules of matter. 
Physics is what we have learned of the laws that 
regulate larger bodies of matter. Hence we speak 
of the Science of Chemistry, the Science of Physics, 
meaning not all that God knows about these things, 
but what we have learned of His laws concerning 
them. 

The earth, or soil, was created and adapted to 
cause seed to germinate, or sprout, and grow under 
certain conditions. Seeds are so made that under 
certain conditions they will sprout and grow in 
the soil. Neither of these operations takes place 
by accident. Both always take place according to 
laws. These laws are fixed, definite and certain 
in their action. Seeds do not produce plants un- 
til the essential conditions are complied with. 
When these conditions or laws of life, one and all, 
are fulfilled, they produce plants and seed after 
their kind and then die; but when these condi- 
tions are wanting or when they are violated, the 
seeds die before they have completed their work, 
or produce sickly plants, of little value. These 
conditions are laws which God has made, and by 
which plants grow. They are laws as definite as 
the laws of chemistry or of physics, or those of 



AGRICULTURE AS A SCIENCE 



any other science. We know many of them as 
clearly and certainly as we know the laws of any 
other science. Therefore we are justified in say- 
ing that Agriculture is a science. Not only is 
this true, but it is the greatest of all physical 




THE FARM DESOLATE AND FORLORN. THIS DRIVES THE 
BOY FROM THE FARM 

sciences. All of the others are more or less related 
to and grow out of this science. 

Chemistry is largely a science of the growth 
and uses of plants and soils and of the elements 
that enter into soil composition and plant life. 

Physics is largely a knowledge of the laws that 
control the elements of plant life, growth and utili- 
zation. Heat, light., electricity, moisture, winds, 
gaseous movements, and such, are all contributory 
to healthy plant growth. 

Agriculture does not stop with the study of 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 




HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE 7 

soils and plants, but has much to do with animal 
life and development. "All flesh is grass", and 
the growing, handling, care and utilization of ani- 
mals is a very important part of every successful 
farmer's work. Bee-farming, poultry-farming, 
dairy-farming, cattle-growing, and many more in- 
stances, show that animal industries are a part of 
farm economy. The insects and birds contribute 
to our success or failure as they are harmful or 
helpful. Even microscopic life often enters largely 
into the account of success or failure. All the 
way from the microscopic to the telescopic worlds, 
we are much concerned. The heavens are scanned 
and the seasons foretold and "weather probabili- 
ties" forecast for our benefit. 

Agriculture touches all nature when the inter- 
est of living man is considered. It is indeed the 
greatest of all sciences. No other science pro- 
poses to take the unorganized and organize it, to 
give life to the sleeping germ and growth to the 
silent dust. If it does not create, it brings us into 
closest contact with the Creator. To know the 
laws which govern the life, health and growth of 
plants and animals is to know the science of 
Agriculture. 

The History of Agriculture. — We can not give 
space for anything like a complete history, nor 
can we get satisfactory information if we had the 
room. Agriculture has received very little atten- 
tion from historians. We get glimpses here and 
there which throw some light upon its condition 
through all the ages past. 

In the times of which Moses wrote, some enor- 



8 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

mous crops were grown in Egypt, but very little 
is said about the methods used. It seems to have 
been the exceeding richness of the soil that lay 
along the Nile, rather than the methods of culti- 
vation. But we are not at liberty to conclude that 
the grapes of Eshcol were a wild growth. In after 
years the children of Israel made the land of 
Canaan yield such abundant crops of all kinds 
that we must believe that their methods of culture 
were not very crude. That country will not to- 
day support one-tenth of the population which 
then lived in great luxury on it. 

The Romans gave great attention to their 
farms. Many of their best statesmen and orators 
prided themselves upon their skill in conducting 
their farms and the beauty of their country homes. 
Virgil gives a minute description of their fruit 
farms. 

But we find the oldest nations, like the Chin- 
ese, still pursuing very crude methods of farming. 
They use the poorest of implements and exhibit 
but little skill and science in the matter. So of 
many other old countries, which pride themselves 
in the fact of their history covering many cen- 
turies. 

We feel justified in saying that the people who 
have farmed best have been the strongest people, 
and have had most influence upon the world's 
history and growth in all that is good. But the 
Science of Agriculture is a new science. Little 
seems to have been known of soil adaption to plant 
production until comparatively recent years. The 
study of the laws of plant germination and growth 



HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE 9 

is still more recent. It has been hardly half a 
century since this study took definite shape and 
systematic form. The application of plant analy- 
sis to the products of the farm, and thereby find- 
ing the wants of plants and how they are to be 
supplied, has wrought a revolution in farming. 




THE MAN WHO GROWS CROPS LIKE THIS PUTS THE FARM ON A PAYING BASIS. 



We no longer grow plants as if it were by acci- 
dent. We may now know what any plant wants 
for breakfast, and how it will have it served. We 
know many of the laws which regulate plant life. 

Since we have entered upon this new era of 
farming, we can teach with certainty how to suc- 
ceed in many lines of Agriculture. 

England, Germany, France, the United States 



10 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

and all civilized nations have established schools, 
experiment stations and colleges for the instruc- 
tion of their farmers in this great and useful 
science. 

Our government has appropriated money to 
maintain one such station and college in each 
State and Territory. Able faculties are main- 
tained in each of these colleges to teach the young 
men of the country to farm scientifically. 

Many books are written annually and numer- 
ous journals published to help spread this valua- 
ble knowledge among those who can not go to the 
schools and colleges, and the schools are now ac- 
tively teaching the subject to all who enter their 
portals. 

So we see this science, so long neglected or 
little known, after having slumbered for nearly 
six thousand years, now, at the dawn of the last 
century, coming right to the front and claiming 
to be equal in importance to any. 

The chemistry side of Agriculture has already 
demanded and received serious attention, and 
books on that subject flood the market. What is 
needed now is a few good books, written by men 
of large experience in farming, on the practical 
side of this great subject. 

The laws are known and the theories are nu- 
merous and good. We need to have the theory 
put into practice, so as to show its correctness 
and value. 



CHAPTER I. 
THE SOIL. 

Some Ways of Showing How Soils are Formed. — 

Find a large stone or rock and observe the fine sand 
and small pebbles that lie about it. Brush from 
the surface of the stone the loose pebbles and 
gravel. These show the first steps in the formation 
of soils from rock. Take small rocks into the 
school room and with a hammer crush them into 
fine pebbles. Continue this process till there is 
produced very fine grained sand. 

Compare the crushed rock to the fine sand and 
pebbles newly formed from the larger rocks by 
natural processes. Do they look the same.'^ 
What are the differences.^ The gravel made by 
hammering the rock is usually harder and less 
brittle than that formed by nature or weathering. 
This process called weathering is a very important 
process and to it may be traced the beginnings of 
a large part of the soil. We should look in our 
dictionary for the term, also in our cyclopaedias, 
and learn all we can about it. In fact we should 
find a convenient sized rock and leave it by the 
school house, where the rains can fall on it and 
freeze and thaw, and then see from year to year 
how the fine pebbles flake off from it as the process 
of weathering goes on. 

We are reasonably certain that when the earth 
first cooled down there was no soil anywhere, but 



12 AGRICTTLTTTRR FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

only masses of rock. After countless ages, when 
the earth got cool enough and began to freeze, the 
rocks began to flake off and form a crude kind of 
soil. This was not soil according to our present 
conception of soil, but it was the beginning of soil. 
It was the crude material out of which all soil has 
been made. 

By the time plants in great numbers and 
animals and man appeared on the earth, the outer 
crust of rocks had rotted and crumbled away and 
formed what we now call soil and subsoil. Rain- 
water soaks into the surface of rocks and freezes, 
thereby flaking off small particles. These particles 
accumulate through the years into cjuite a mass, 
and this mass it is that forms the basis of our 
present soils over the entire face of the earth. 

To quote from Bailey's Cyclopaedia of Agri- 
culture: "The soil is not a mere inert mixture. 
Its parts have shape and size and arrangement, 
as well as being merely composed of certain sub- 
stances. xA.ll of these parts have been separately 
formed, moved, and assorted, and then laid down 
together as we find them ; and, moreover, they are 
not even yet at rest, but are always taking new 
forms and new places and making new partner- 
ships, entailing a never-ending series of mysteries. 
From the soil all things come; and into it all 
things at last return ; and yet it is always new and 
fresh and clean, and always ready for new genera- 
tions. This soft thin crust of the earth — ^so 
infinitesimally thin that it cannot be shown in 
proper scale on any globe or chart — supports all 
the countless myriads of men and animals and 



THE SOIL 13 

plants, and has supported them for countless 
cycles and will continue to support them for other 
countless cycles, In view of all this achievement, 
it is not strange that we do not yet know the soil 
and understand it; and we are in mood to be 
patient with our shortcomings," 



CHAPTER II. 
FORMATION OF SOILS. 

Soil Formation. — In the former chapter we 
learned something of the source of soils and had 
some suggestions of how big is the problem of the 
study of soils. Now we are to get some idea of 
how nature actually manufactures soils out of the 
original rocks of mother earth. Of course we do 
not know^ all of nature's methods of forming soils. 
We can observe some of her ways and thereby get 
acquainted with a few of her secrets. 

Collect several smooth and several angular 
rocks for a school-room museum. Can we not 
imagine that all were rough and angular at one 
time.^ What changed them into smooth stones.^ 
Generally this change is brought about by the 
action of moving water, moving ice, and in some 
places to some extent by moving atmosphere or 
wind laden with fine sand or dust. Moving water 
and ice aid mostly in reducing rock to soil. 

Perhaps the most active agents now known in 
the formation of soils are as follows: 

1. Moving water. 

2. Ice. 

3. Weathering, (in which process ice also 
plays the best part). 

4. Winds. 

5. Living animals. 

6. Living plants. 

7. Decaying animals and plants. 

8. Acids and gases. 

It is not necessary to discuss these agencies 



FORMATION OF SOILS 15 

here. We only need to think about them, and 
prepare to make further study of tliem when the 
time is ripe for it. We should, however, make some 
observations on a few of them. 

Relation of Decaying Animals and Plants to 
Soils. — Whatever of organic matter there is in the 
soil must have come from decaying animals and 
plants, and as this is a very necessary ingredient, 
we should give special attention to this division 
of the subject and learn how to increase the 
organic matter in our soils in order to make better 
crops and larger yields. Another chapter will be 
devoted entirely to this subject. 

Relation of Living Animals and Plants to Soil 
Formation. — Earthworms can be observed almost 
any time in spring and summer, depositing their 
worm-shaped piles of earth and thereby renewing 
the surface soil. They enrich the soil by increasing 
the nitrogen content, and perhaps change the 
chemical composition otherwise. Other animals 
to be mentioned in this connection are ants, moles, 
and other burrowing animals. How do these help 
to form soil.^ 

Examine the roots of growing plants, especially 
those that grow on or about rock. It will be ob- 
served that they pierce the rocks and help to 
break them down and form soil. Plants also pro- 
duce acids to some extent which aid in reducing 
rock. The living bacteria of the soil, which are so 
small that they cannot be seen without being 
magnified many times, are wonderfully active in 
reducing all kinds of decaying matter to soil, and 
making it available for use by growing plants. 



CHAPTER III. 
SOIL ELEMENTS. 

What is an Element? — An element is a sub- 
stance that cannot be or has not been divided into 
two or more simpler substances. Gold is an 
element because it cannot be divided into simpler 
substances. Silver, iron, copper, and the like are 
elements for the same reason. There are as many 
as seventy-five of these simple elements that can- 
not be divided into two or more substances, and 
the various combinations of two or more of them 
into compounds make up the whole of nature as 
we see it. 

Gi^owing tilings differ from each other only in 
this one essential fact, that they have slightly 
different combinations of elements that go into 
their making. The soil is the storehouse for much 
of the material that goes to make plants, and 
plants differ from animals in that they can make 
living matter out of these simple elements in the 
soil. What a wonderful law it is under the opera- 
tion of wdiich several of these elements — such as 
carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phos- 
phorus, potassium, iron, and several others — can 
combine under certain conditions and make a 
cotton plant, and then under certain other condi- 
tions make a corn plant ! This world of nature that 
surrounds us is filled with such wonders and we 
shall find it exceedingly fascinating to make little 
excursions into that fairy-land of science that is 
sometimes called Agriculture. 

The essential elements of the soil, so far as 
they are useful to man and subserve his purposes 



SOIL ELEMENTS 17 

in the production of useful plants, are those named 
above: Nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, 

oxygen, hydrogen, car})on, iron, calcium, and a 
few others of less importance. A soil in order to l)e 
considered good must have all these in sufficient 
quantities to afford the plant ample food supply, 
as all of them except carbon must come through 
the root system to all parts of the plant. We 
shall learn later how carbon is supplied to the 
plant. 

All but three of these elements are always 
found in sufficient quantities in the soil and do not 
have to be supplied by man. The three about 
which man should be most concerned are nitrogen, 
potassium and phosphorus as they have to be 
supplied constantly to almost all soils. Another 
element that must be supplied to most soils from 
time to time is calcium which is usually applied 
in the form of lime. Much more will be said 
about these elements and how best to secure and 
apply them, in connection with fertilizers and 
manures. 

We thus see that the soil is not a very simple 
thing to be easily understood without much study. 
It is a mixture of many compounds of many 
elementary substances, and through many years 
of adjustment has become exactly suited to the 
growth of plants. Perhaps the plants too have 
done their part in adjusting themselves to the soil 
in which ihey grow. This mutual relationship 
between the soil and the organic life that grows in 
it is one of the best illustrations that can be cited 
of the wonderful power of adaptation in nature. 



CHAPTER IV. 
KINDS OF SOIL. 

General Classification. — Soils are classified into 
the following groups: sandy soils, clayey soils, 
loamy soils, swamp soils, limestone soils, alkali 
soils and arid soils; each class being determined 
by the amount of sand, clay and humus or other 
ingredients contained therein. These various 
classes differ in their composition, those containing 
a large per cent of sand being determined sandy 
soils, and those containing a large per cent of cla}^ 
being called clayey soils. Sand soils contain about 
seventy per cent of sand and clay soils have about 
the same per cent of clay. Soils which have about 
one-half clay and one-half sand are called loamy 
soils. When they have more sand than clay, 
about sixty per cent sand and forty per cent clay, 
they are called sandy loams. If they have more 
clay, about sixty per cent, and less sand, about 
forty per cent, they are called clay loams. We find, 
then, sandy, clayey and loamy soils, all varying 
with the relative quantities of sand and clay 
entering into their composition. This classifica- 
tion is based entirely upon the mechanical 
structure of the soil. Sand is the name given to 
coarse particles and clay the name given to fine 
particles. 

How to Find the Amount of Sand Contained in 
Soil. — Put in a glass jar about a pint of ordinary 
soil and fill the jar almost full with water. Shake 
this well and let stand; the sand will settle at the 



KINDS OF SOIL 19 

bottom, and the clay next, the coarser particles 
of clay settling above the finer. This form of 
experiment should be made on a number of kinds 
of soil and in this way determine according to the 
above to what class each soil thus treated belongs. 
The muddy look of the water is caused by the 
amount of fine particles of clay held in suspense. 
If this water were moving, the particles thus held 
in suspense would go into the rivers and some of 
it on down into the sea. On top of the water will 
be found some humus that would also get away 
and thereby deplete our soils. 

By measuring we can calculate about what 
proportion of clay and sand are contained in the 
different samples of soil, and in this way tell to 
what class our several soils belong. 

Sandy Soils. — Sandy soils are always easy to 
work, but are rather poor in plant foods. They 
do not hold water like the clayey soils, but absorb 
water rapidly and as rapidly lose it. Sandy soils 
are best suited to rapidly growing crops. A con- 
siderable amount of vegetable matter and com- 
mercial fertilizer incorporated into sandy soils 
makes them yield large crops. 

Clayey Soils. — These may be easily recognized 
by their sticky character. Some claim that 50% 
of clay in a soil makes it a clay soil, while others 
claim that 70% of clay is required to make a soil 
clayey. Clayey soils are usually cold soils and 
suffer from extremes of rainy and dry seasons. 
The grasses and cereals do better on them than 
other crops. 

Loamy Soils. — This term is applied to soils 



20 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



with a mixture of sand and clay, and may be 
divided into sandy loams, containing a low per 
cent of clay; common, loams, containing a slightly 
higher per cent of clay; clay loams, containing 
perhaps as much as 40% of clay; limy loams, 
containing some lime and a low per cent of clay. 
Loamy soils are fine for almost any kind of farm- 
ing and are found chiefly in black prairie belts and 
river valleys. 













■ A W 1 



CELERY IS PROFITABLE ON BOTTOM LANDS. 

Other classes of soils are the lime soils, 
swamp soils, alkali soils, and arid and semi-arid 
soils, and some put another in the list under the 
name of humid soils where there is a heavy rain- 
fall, or constant overflow of a river. The names 
applied to these last types of soil suggest what 
they are, but every school should make an 



KINDS OF SOIL 21 

effort to get samples of every class of soil here 
given and keep for class study. This may be done 
through the aid of Agricultural Colleges and 
P^xperiment Stations, provided they cannot be 
secured locally. 

Secure locally as many kinds of soil as possible, 
and measure a pint of each and weigh and record 
result. Dry out the samples thoroughly in a 
heating oven or by a fire, and weigh again in order 
to find the water holding capacity of each. In 
the next chapter we are to make a study of the 
water holding capacity of soils, and the best 
methods of investigating the problem. 



to 



CHAPTER V. 

watp:r holding capacity of soils. 

Moisture in Sampks of Field Soils. — One of 

the greatest problems in soil physics is a study of 
the relation of moisture to the texture and treat- 
ment of the soil. What the soil contains, and 
how we cultivate it determine more than anything 
else what this relation shall be, whether or not it 
is to be a wholesome relation as regards plant 
growth. 

The securing of a soil with large capacity for 
absorbing and holding water, yet one permitting 
the normal growth and development of the roots 
of plants, — or perhaps a soil that can as well 
draw the water from below for the use of plants 
during dry weather — are conditions for which 
the farmer should strive, and without which he 
cannot get good results. 

In order to get the truth about the amount of 
moisture contained in our soils suppose we make 
the following test: 

Collect samples of soils from a well cultivated 
and fertilized field, from sandy loam, and from 
clayey soil. To collect these samples, secure a 
two-inch auger with long handle, clear away top 
loose soil to the depth of about a half inch, and for 
the surface soil or soil proper, bore down to a depth 
of about 7, 8, or 9 inches, the depth depending on 
the usual depth to which the land is plowed. 
Discard two inches and go to a depth of 16 inches 



WATER HOLDING CAPACITY OF SOILS 23 

to get a sample of subsurface soil. Discard another 
two inches and for a sample of subsoil go to a 
depth of about 35 or 40 inches. 

Take these samples all in duplicate from each of 
the three kinds of soils, also from the three layers 
of soil, making in all a total number of eighteen 
samples, and put each in a drying pan, taking 
care that no water evaporates before the samples 
are accurately weighed. 







^C 



a — sou.. 

b HARDPAN. 

C POROUS EARTH BELOW. 



After they are accurately weighed and records 
made, place them in a drying oven and heat up 
to about 212 to 225 degrees F., or a little above 
the heat required for boiling water. Let the 
samples remain heated for about 4 or 5 hours, 
and then remove from the oven and weigh again. 
The difference between these latter weights and 
the former will represent the per cent of moisture 
held in the soils, and will represent the water 
holding capacity. 

A number of students should be working at 
once in this experiment in order to keep it going 
properly, and should be carefully directed and 



24 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



tutored in the methods of the work before begin- 
ning it. If successfully carried out, it will mean a 
great deal to them in the way of bringing to their 
attention the advantage a good soil has over a 
poor, and will also suggest to them how necessary 
it is to strive to make poor soils good. 

For convenience suppose small outlines for 
tables be drawn after the following manner: 



Sample No. 


Wt. of pan 


Wt. 

of wet soil 


Wt. 

of dry soil 


Difference 


% water 























































































Conditions of the Test. — The samples of soil 
should be handled rapidly after taking them from 
the ground till they are in the oven or at least 
in an air tight vessel in order for them to keep the 
moisture in them till weighed. They should also 
be weighed as quickly as possible after they are 
taken out of the oven in order to keep them from 
absorbing moisture before they are weighed again. 
Questions that should be stressed are as follows: 
What kind of weather was it the week before the 
samples were taken? Were the samples very 



WATER HOLDING CAPACITY OF SOILS 25 

moist? Which one contained the most water? 
Which layer contained the most moisture, the 
top soil, subsurface soil, or subsoil? 

Attention should be directed to the reason why 
the good soil contained the most moisture, namely, 
that the vegetable matter in it both held water 
and kept the water in the subsoil from getting 
away. It must become evident that a soil that is 
covered with an}^ kind of decaying vegetable 
matter will hold water better than mere grains of 
sand or clav or the mixture of the two. 



CHAPTER VI. 

HOW SOILS ARE MADE TO HOLD WATER 
LONGEST. 

A Test to be Made on Soils Taken as in Last 
Chapter. — Secure samples of soils as in last chapter, 
and weigh immediately before smy moisture has 
had time to escape. Record these weights, and 
then spread in a dry place and weigh the same 
samples every twenty-four hours, and see the 
difference in the rate of drying of the various 
samples. 

Capillary Moisture. — This is the thin film of 
moisture around the soil particles and benefits 
directly the plants, and therefore is of the greatest 
interest to the farmer. It is the moisture that 
moves freely through the soil on the principle that 
water is soaked up in a cloth that is put in the 
edge of a basin containing water. Soon the cloth 
will be moist far above the water line. This is 
done by capillary attraction. So is moisture 
capillary moisture when it moves freely in the soil 
through capillary attraction. 

Not all of the water film over the soil particles 
moves, and hence it is not all capillary water. 
That which does not move is called hygroscopic 
water, and does growing plants little or no good. 
This moisture can be driven from the particles 
only by a high heat, while the capillary moisture 
will soon evaporate if the soil is exposed to the 
air. Since it is the capillary moisture that is so 
important in agriculture, we should make every 
effort to prepare our soils to hold capillary mois- 
ture. 

How are we to know if our soils are able to hold 
capillary moisture.'* The following test will enable 



HOW SOILS ARE MADE TO HOLD WATER LONGEST 27 

US to tell: Secure samples of soil as in the former 
chapter, and weigh as quickly as possible before 
evaporation takes place, and record the weights 
thus obtained. Spread out the samples in the soil 
pans and carefully weigh every 24 hours, until 
the weights become a constant, — that is do not 
any longer change from day to day. It will be 
observed that the difference between this loss of 
capillary moisture and the total moisture content 
determined in last lesson is the hygroscopic 
moisture. This latter is not very important; but 
the capillary moisture which may be obtained by 
calculating what per cent of loss was incurred by 
exposing the samples to dry air until the weights 
have become a constant, is of the greatest import- 
ance. Compare the capillary moisture of the 
various samples, and see how the good soil ranks in 
this particular. A number of experiments along 
this line will be of the greatest benefit in classwork, 
and should cover the greatest possible variety of 
soils from the poorest to the best. 

It will be noticed that any kind of decaying 
vegetable matter will help to increase the amount 
of capillary moisture in any soil, and therefore 
should be used with this truth in mind. Any 
form of vegetable matter plowed under, even in 
the form of common hay or grass, helps wonder- 
fully to increase the water holding capacity of the 
soil, an item that cannot be overlooked in the 
development of soil. Frequently the size of the 
crop that is taken from a field is determined by 
the water holding capacity of the soil and by 
this alone. 



CHAPTER VII. 
THE PROBLEM OF SOIL TEMPERATURE. 

The Relation Between Heat and Moisture in 
the SoU. — It has been found that no chemical 
change can take place without the presence of 
both heat and moisture. The presence of air or 
oxygen is also necessary in most organic changes. 
Each of these three we must have, but not in 
such quantity as to preclude the presence of 
the others. 

It goes without saying that a wet clammy soil 
is colder than a loosely constructed soil, and will 
retard the germination of seed in spring, and the 
growth of plants in any season. The color of a 
soil has much to do with its temperature, but 
the question of drainage plays the bigger part. 
Some soils are easily drained while others are not. 
A sandy soil is generally an easily drained soil 
while a clay soil is not easily drained. To show 
how important drainage is to successful farming, 
suppose we make the following test: 

Make two small wooden boxes, about 2 feet 
square and 6 inches deep. Put good soil of the 
same kind in each, and have one water tight while 
the other has holes in its bottom. Saturate both 
with water, and then on a clear sunshiny day, 
begin in the early morning about 8 o'clock and 
take at frequent intervals the temperature of the 
soil in each box. See which one remains cooler, 
and explain to your satisfaction why this is. 



THE PROBLEM OF SOIL TEMPERATURE 29 

Application of This Lesson. — Some fields have 
no drainage and lience present a cold chilly soil 
in spring for the young seeds. It takes so much 
heat to germinate seed, and a certain temperature 
for plants to grow off well, and if this condition 
is not satisfied we cannot get the desired results. 
The warmer soil- is usually one that has drainage 
and can get more of the heat of the sun in early 
spring. 

Some Suggestions for Securing Better Drainage. 
— It is not always possible to get good drainage 
without tile-draining, but in most cases the neces- 
sary drainage may be secured in other ways. We 
all have noticed that where deep plowing is done, 
we have better crops even with lighter applica- 
tions of fertilizers. If plowing ten or eleven inches 
with a turn or a disc plow does not give the desired 
effect, we should plow our land once in three or 
four years with a sub-soil plow and go about 
fifteen or eighteen inches so the surface water will 
have ample room to settle below the root area of 
the plants before it seeps away. 

We have already learned by experiment that a 
soil with decaying vegetable matter in it contains 
more capillary moisture than one without this 
material. It is equally true that a soil that has 
vegetable matter in it is much more easily drained 
than one without the vegetable matter, and this is 
an additional reason why we should strive in every 
way possible to increase the vegetable matter in 
our soils. 

Tile-draining. — We are not going to consider 
tile-draining in this connection, but it seems 



30 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

timely to suggest in this connection that this is 
one of the ways of getting proper drainage in our 
soils. Most of our rich bottom lands could be made 
to double their yield without increasing the fer- 
tilizers, if they were properly tile-drained; and 
it is as certain that many of our hill-sides need 
only to be tile-drained in order to put new life in 
them. In another chapter we are going to have 
more to say on this subject. 

Relation of Color to Temperature in Soils. — 
A dark colored soil is warmer than a light colored 
soil, as msiy be proven by the following simple 
test: Make a flat box about three feet by six 
feet, and six inches in depth, with bottom not too 
tight so that water can easily run through it. 
Fill one end with the lightest colored soil you can 
find and the other with some very dark soil. 
Keep the partitions well marked by a board or 
some other marking. Keep moderately moist. 
In one side put several kinds of farm-crop seed 
and put the same kinds of seed on the other side 
and in relatively the same position. Keep notes 
on which side the seed germinate first. Keep the 
temperature of the soil on each side carefully in 
your notes, and see if you cannot associate this 
with the difference in the time of the germination 
of the seed on the different sides. This is one of 
the most interesting as well as essential experi- 
ments that can be made, and is very simple too. 



CHAPTER VIII. 
EFFECT OF LIME ON SOILS. 

Friable Soil. — Friable soil is any soil that 
easily crumbles or pulverizes, and is easily worked. 
This condition is sometimes hard to secure, in 
heavy red uplands, and farmers have to apply 
lime to the soil in order to get the proper results. 
When clay soils are plowed too wet, they form 
large heavy clumps that can hardly be worked 
out in a whole season. Many clay soils that have 
been improperly worked run together and after 
a rain will crust over almost like brick or cement. 

In order for soils to be in good condition for 
tilth, they must form medium to small size crumbs, 
perhaps about the size of alfalfa seed, and these 
must lie loosely together. This is just what lime 
does for heavy soils; it causes the particles to 
flocculate, and form a kind of crumbly texture. 
This, of course, makes the soil lighter to till and 
causes better drainage. 

In a small area in the plots about the school 
ground, clear oft' a small piece of ground, say a 
small area of about 8x16 feet, and on one-fourth, 
put no lime; on the second fourth, put one quart 
of lime; on the third fourth, two quarts; on the 
fourth, three quarts. Plant some convenient 
crop and notice just how dift'erent the several 
plots will respond to cultivation. Calculate how 
much per acre of lime you applied at the above 
rates. 



32 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

Other Benefits of Lime Applied to the Soil. — 

Some soils are acid, or have too high per cent of 
carbonic acid in them. This condition usually 
obtains in low places, or nmcky swamp lands. 
To correct this evil, a good deal of lime must be 
applied, once every few years. The acid is pro- 
duced by the decay of vegetable matter, and 
generally indicates a rich soil otherwise. 

There are certain small organisms in the soil 
that do much better in their work of reducing 
decaying vegetable matter to plant food material, 
under the influence of lime or some other form of 
carbonate than when these materials are not 
applied. The organisms seem to get the carbon 
in their little bodies or shells from practically no 
other source. The organisms themselves are 
very essential to the health of the soil, and hence 
their health should be as carefully looked after as 
the health of the plant. 

Some farmers think that lime is a fertilizer, but 
it is not in the sense that other materials are 
fertilizers. If very often releases the forces of 
nature and aids plants materially in making use 
of other forms of fertilizer, but it is no fertilizer 
in itself. He who applies it should have in mind 
the real function of lime to the soil, to the plant, 
and to the soil organisms, if he would plan wisely 
its application. 

How Much Lime to Apply. — This depends on 
what we apply it for, as well as on the condition 
of our land. To aid in stimulating the soil organ- 
isms we apply only about 500 pounds to the acre. 
To correct the acidity of an acid soil we should 



EFFECT OF LIME ON SOILS 33 

apply from 1,000 to 3,000 pounds per acre, depend- 
ing on the amount or per cent of acid in the soil. 
If we use lime to make our heav}^ lands friable, 
we need apply as much as we can conveniently 
apply up to two tons, the minimum depending 
on the closeness of the soil as well as its hardness. 
What Kind of Lime to Apply. — It might be well 
to consider this topic one of the greatest import- 
ance, as farmers who apply quick lime to the soil 
injure the soil bacteria. Quick lime and slaked 
lime both help to set free plant food, especially 
nitrogen, but inasmuch as the slaked lime "does 
the good without doing any injury, it is the proper 
form to use. Its effect upon the granulation of 
clay soils is slightl}^ less than the quick lime, but 
the freedom from all harm makes it the safer to 
use. . 



CHAPTER IX. 
SOIL DRAINAGE. 

The Importance of Soil Drainage. — All farm 
crops must have a well ventilated soil in which 
to grow. If the water stands too near the surface, 
the plants will soon sicken and die. The hydro- 
static water must be below the normal depth of the 
root S3^stem of the plants if we expect perfect 
development. Thousands of acres of lowlands 
and swamp lands have been reclaimed by drain- 
age, and millions of acres of uplands can be made 
to double the present yield by careful drainage. 

What is Soil Drainage ? — Soil drainage is the 
draining of water from soils that ordinarily are not 
properly drained naturally. Such soils are either 
from their nature too sticky, or shallow^ or are 
lowlands, and to drain them means to make 
possible the proper aeration of that portion in 
which plants grow, that was not ventilated before. 
A soil in which water stands to within a few inches 
of the surface too long during a rainy season, is 
not suited to the development of plant life, and 
has to be ventilated if used to the best advantage. 

Methods of Drainage. — The common practice 
is to ditch or tile-drain, either of which may be 
done with very little difficulty. Lowlands may 
be ditched in sections and tile-drained between 
ditches. In fact this is quite necessary to get the 
best results. On hill-sides, only the underground 
drains are possible. Farmers often have a barren 



SOIL DRAINAGE 



35 



hill-side that never makes a profitable crop and 
are at a loss to know just what is the trouble. In 
most cases, a tile-drain on the brow of the hill will 
remove all difficulty. The water that falls on top 
of the hill or upland seeps out at the edge of the 
hill and keeps the hydrostatic water too near the 
surface, and plants will not 
grow. This condition may not 
last longer than the rainy sea- 
sons in spring and early sum- 
mer, and autumn, but this will 
be quite sufficient to hinder the 
growth of plants, and hence 
keep the spots barren. A tile- 
drain run just on the turn of 
the hill, will catch most of the 
water, and help to air the soil, 
ill begin to flourish there immedi- 




A DRAIN DITCH. 



and crops w 
ately. 

Effects of Drainage. — We were required to 
construct two boxes for conducting an experiment 
outlined in Chapter VH. If we take these two 
boxes and fill them each with the same kind of 
soil, plant seed in them, and saturate with water, 
we shall see which one germinates the seed earlier, 
the box that has the drainage or the one that is 
water tight. The well drained box not only has the 
moisture problem of the soil regulated, but also 
regulates the heat, by having the water properly 
reduced. We may say then that to regulate the 
water content of the soil by proper drainage is 
to regulate the temperature as well, and make 
ideal or natural conditions for plant growth. 



36 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

The Cost of Drainage. — This will always depend 
on several conditions: 

On the kind of labor eniploj^ed in ditching, 

The nature of the soil, 

The depth of the ditch, 

The distance apart that the tiling is to be put. 

Price and freight — or total cost of tile. 

All these things considered, the cost will 
range between $25.00 and $40.00 per acre, count- 
ing on getting labor at a normal price and having 
to ditch land that is medium — not too hard nor 
too soft. A few good farmers with well organized 
labor have reduced the cost to about $21.50 per 
acre, but this is the exception and not the rule. 

Ralph Waldo Emerson, the poet and philoso- 
pher says: "Tiles are political economists. They 
are so many young Americans, announcing a better 
era and a day of fat things." It is claimed by 
many that the land that needs tile-drainage will 
pay for all expenses for tiling the first year, in the 
increase of production. This sounds like a rather 
extravagant claim for the merits of tiling, but the 
most enthusiastic advocates of tile-drainage are 
those who have tried it. Invariably they have 
been greatly profited. 

Ditches for tile-draining need not be more 
than 18 to 20 inches deep, and should be about 20 
to 40 feet apart depending on the stiffness of the 
soil that is to be drained. Tile should be put in a 
straight bottom ditch, not bobbing up and down, 
and should have enough fall to insure drainage, 



SOIL DRAINAGE 37 

and lead to an open ditch or a main pipe at the 
junction of two gently sloping hill-sides. In 
other words, the main pipes should usually follow 
a drain made by surface water, or a gully, and 
should also have enough fall to insure draining. 



CHAPTER X. 
IRRIGATION. 

Importance of Irrigation. — A great many people 
think that irrigation is a subject that should be 
studied only by those who are to make a living 
by farming in a dry country where the rainfall is 
not sufficient to keep plants alive without arti- 
ficial irrigation. This is not true, as almost any 
farm can be made to treble the present yield if 
it could be properly irrigated. Out of every 
hundred pounds of vegetable crops produced 
about ninety-five pounds is water; besides this 
much more water evaporates through the leaves. 

In order to prove the ^^due of irrigation to our 
connuon Eastern or Southern farms, suppose we 
try the following simple experiment: Take two 
plats of ground al)out the school or home, not more 
than 6 feet square, each, and fertihze and prepare 
as perfectly as possible. Plant four or five hills 
of cotton in each, and cultivate regularly alike 
and keep all grass and weeds down. Let nature 
water one and keep the other in a proper moist 
condition between rainy seasons in early summer. 
Note in which one the plants grow faster. Why 
is this.^ To leave this little demonstration to the 
imagination and not carry it out as outHned, is to 
deprive the class of much pleasure and leave them 
still unconvinced of the effect of irrigation. 

Sources of Water. — Only in hilly countries or 
hilly sections of any country coidd one depend 
on the fall of river beds for irriiiation water. It is 



IRRIGATION 



39 



not uncommon to find that lakes and wells supply 
many sections with water, a small pump and 
gasoline engine being used to get water in the 
necessary quantities from either of these sources; 
but in any small ten acre field, many a crop would 
more than pay for these in one year with the 
proper use of the water. We have not begun to 
apply irrigation as it should be in the South. 

Methods of Irrigation. — There are three ways 
of irrigating: 




SURFACE IRRIGATION IN A CABBAGE FIELD. 

First, we take running streams, and by using 
dams and ditches turn them from their natural bed 
or channel and carry them by gravity over the 
fields to be watered. To do this successfully, 
often requires very large outlays of money and 



40 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 




h '•.^.J^ 



IRRIGATION 41 

skillful engineering. Canals have to be made 
hundreds of miles long and large enough to carry 
large rivers. Smaller and still smaller ditches are 
carried from these until finally the water is turned 
in small streams upon the fields. This method 
is largely employed in growing the fine fruits and 
grapes in California, and can be made use of 
wherever the country is broken and the streams 
have a good fall. Even where we have rain this adds 
very much to the yield. 

A second method is to use windmills and 
steam-pumps and raise the water from wells, lakes 
or rivers, and then distribute it much as above 
described, the chief difference being in the method 
of obtaining the Water. This method is generally 
used where there are no streams with sufficient 
fall, or on the plains where there are no streams 
at all. The water thus obtained is frequently 
measured out to the customers at a certain price. 
By these tolls the expenses of the system are paid. 
Private waterworks may be often utilized to 
greatly increase the yield of vegetables in our 
domestic gardens. 

The third method of irrigation, if we may be 
pardoned for a somewhat new use of this term, is to 
irrigate from below, instead of from above. By 
this we mean that we may plow the soil so deep 
and pulverize it so fine that capillary attraction 
will bring up the water when it is needed, pro- 
vided we have taken care of the fall of water in 
winter, when we did not need it. The heat of the 
summer sun and the pumping power of the plant 
root will greatly assist in bringing up the water. 



42 AGRICrLTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

If the land has been properly plowed, the plant 
roots will grow very deep in the soil — from three 
to seven feet, and as each of these is a skillfully 
made pump, all of them, acting at once, will be 
able to bring up great quantities of earth water. 
A great advantage in this method of irrigation 
is that, besides helping to secure all the water 
needed, it will help in very many other things. 
It will prevent all washing and leaching, and will 
make the soil deeper and richer from year to year. 
All the time it will be yielding larger and larger 
crops. Keep in connection with the earth water 
below, and this water will, by percolating through 
the pores of the soil, supply the growing plant with 
the life-giving water in hot summer. Short 
drouths will not injure the crops. Thus, when 
the poorly farmed land yields short crops, this 
properly worked land will give large crops when 
the prices are best. The farmer who properly 
manages the water on his land will be almost sure 
to be a prosperous man. 

We shall readily see that it does not pay to 
put nuich water on land that is poorly cared for, 
as the water may take off some of the small amount 
of fertilizers, but with any soil that is properly 
cultivated and fertilized a properly regulated 
supply of water will always improve and make 
larger and better crops. 



CHAPTER XL 
THE BEAUTY OF THE SOIL. 

How Beauty Affects Our Education. — Certainl}^ 
it is as niiicli the duty of our teachers to place 
before us the poetry and beauty of the soil as it 
is to give the scientific and practical operations 
of farm life. It has been our custom to dissociate 
agriculture from all that is beautiful in nature, 
and to put it on the basis of routine and monotony. 
A few lessons on the sentiment of the soil, will win 
many more students to a love of farm life, and at 
the same time will help to put the study on its 
proper basis. Education is not complete unless 
it idealizes in a measure all that it touches upon, 
and certainly there is no more beautiful back- 
ground for poetry, eloquence, and religion than 
some reflections on the genuine beauty of the soil. 

The Soil in Literature. — ^Howevemear heaven 
our poets and philosophers soar in their effort to 
get away from mother earth, they must sooner or 
later come back for food, for thought, for renewed 
energy and inspiration, that they may soar higher 
each time in the good they do. In fact, when they 
remain in upper air for a season, they learn without 
being told that mother earth is as much heaven 
as there is in upper space or elsewhere in the great 
universe, and are contented to anchor themselves 
anew on this blessed gift of the Great Spirit of the 
universe. 

We therefore find literature full of references 



44 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

to the soil and many of the parables in the Bible 
are based directly on a study of the soil. Give 
two soil parables, outlining the agricultural im- 
portance of same. For a month after this chapter 
had been studied, note in all forms of reading how 
often the earth and her powers and bounties are 
referred to. Note also what a change is coming in 
the references to soil in literature. 

The following quotations should be read and 
re-read till we all get their full meaning, and then 
should we learn to think of them in connection 
with our own home farms. They are all from the 
best of literature, and are worthy of more study 
than any mere mechanical lessons in agriculture: 

"As I drew a still fresher soil about the rows with my hoe, I disturbed 
the ashes of unchronicled nations who in primeval years lived under these 
heavens, and their small implements of war and hunting were brought 
to the light of this modern day. They lay mingled with other natural 
stones, some of which bore the marks of having been burned by Indian 
fires, and some by the sun, and also bits of pottery and glass brought hither 
by the recent cultivators of the soil. When my hoe tinkled against the stones, 
that music echoed to the woods and the sky, and was an accompaniment 
to my labor which yielded an instant and immeasurable crop. It was no 
longer beans that I hoed, nor I that hoed beans." — Taken from Thoreau's 
Walden Pond. 

"The general evolution of this soil is toward greater powers; and yet, 
so nicely balanced are these powers that within his lifetime a man may 
ruin any parfof it that society allows him to hold ; and in despair he throws 
it back to nature to reinvigorate and to heal. We are accustomed to think 
of the power of man in gaining dominion over the forces of nature, he bends 
to his use the expansive powers of steam, the energy of electric currents, 
and he ranges through space in the light that he concentrates in his tel- 
escope; but while he is doing all this he sets at naught the powers in the 
soil beneath his feet, wastes them, and deprives himself of vast sources 
of energy. Man will never gain dominion until he learns from nature how 
to maintain the augmenting powers of the disintegrating crust of the earth. 
* * * The surface of the earth is ours to do with it much as we will. 
It is the one great resource over which we have dominion. Within this 
crust are great stores of minerals and metals and of other materials that 
we can use for our comfort; these materials we can save and we may use 



THE BEAUTY OF THE SOH. 45 



them with economy, but we can not cause them to increase. But the soil 
may be made better as well as worse, more as well as less; and to save the 
producing powers of it is far and away the most important consideration 
in the conservation of natural resources. 

"I am glad of every new effort that puts men rationally on their feet 
on the soil. It will be a great thing when the soil is known in the schools. 
I wait for good politics and good institutions to grow out of the soil. 1 
wait for the time, also, when we shall have good poetry and good artistic 
literature developing from subjects associated with the soil; for we want 
good literature to appeal to all men." — L. H. Bailey. 

"A little consideration of the relations of the higher animals to plants 
makes it clear that all the advance of the earth's life above its simpler forms 
depends upon the existence of moderately fertile soils such as produce 
food fit for the nurture of the higher forms. They could not have developed 
if the world had afforded no better provision for them than the license 
of the rocks or the mosses of the peat swamps. We thus see that the soil 
is really the immediate source not only of the superior kind of plants which 
feed in the soil, but also of the animals which depend upon them. If the 
plants such as those which produce fruits, grains, or nutritious herbage, 
had not had this field for their development, there would have been no chance 
for the evolution of the series of animals which has led life up to the es- 
tate of man to find a place upon the earth. 

"The foregoing considerations should give the student a larger con- 
ception of the historic features of the soil coating than can be acquired by 
any mere limited view of their conditions. He should clearly see that 
this mass of debris, which at first sight seems a mere rude mingling of un- 
related materials, is in truth a well organized part of nature, which has 
beautifully varied and adjusted its functions with the forces which operate 
upon it." — N. S. Shaler. 

"I never tire of contemplating the soil itself, the mantle rock, as the 
geologists call it. It clothes the framework of the earth as the flesh clothes 
the bones. It is the seat of the vitality of the globe, the youngest part, the 
growing, changing part. Out of it we came, and to it we retm-n. It is 
literally our mother as the sun is our father. 

"The soil! the residuum of the rocks, the ashes of the mountains. 
We know what a vast stretch of time has gone to the making of it; that it 
has been baked and boiled, and frozen and thawed, acted upon by sun and 
star and wind and rain; mixed and remixed and kneaded and added to, 
as the house- wife kneads and moulds her bread; that it has lain under the 
seas in the stratified rocks for incalculable ages; that chemical and me- 
chanical and vital forces have all had a hand in its preparation; that the 
vast cycles of animal and vegetable life of the foreworld have contributed 
to its fertility; that the life of the sea, and the monsters of the earth, and 
the dragons of the air, have left their ashes here, so that when I stir it with 
my hoe, or turn it with my spade, I know I am stirring or turning the meal 
of a veritable grist of the gods. * * * \ handful of the soil by your 
door is probably the most composite thing you can find in a day's journey. 



46 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

It may be an epitome of a whole geological formation, or of two or more 
of them. * * * Our lawns are made up of ashes from the funeral pyre 
of mountains, of dust from the tombs of geological ages." — John Bur- 
roughs, Time and Change. 

Much time should be devoted to a study of 
the meaning of these passages. They are good 
Hterature, and are the best authority on the 
formation of the earth's crust. Whether we are 
young or old, we shall certainly find a great treat 
in these beautiful tributes to the soil under our 
feet. 



CHAPTER XII. 
POSSESSION OF THE SOIL. 

Let every pupil in school gather a handful of 
soil from some clean place about the grounds, and 
bring it in and place it on a piece of paper on the 
desk. This will be material with which to spend one 
study period. First try to imagine just how this 
soil has been formed from the rocks of the fore- 
world. Use a few sketches from the former chapter 
by way of suggestion. Imagine how vital this 
bit of filthy looking material must be to feed a 
Iiimgrj^ world of animals and plants! 

Read the following to show the transformation 
that comes about in the growth of animals and 
plants: 

"Now I am terrified at the Earth! it is that calm and patient. 
It grows such sweet things out of such corruptions. 
It turns harmless and stainless on its axis, with such endless successions 

of diseased corpses. 
It distils such exquisite winds out of such infused fetor, 
It renews with such unwitting looks, its prodigal, annual, sumptuous crops, 
It gives such divine materials to men, and accepts such leavings from them 
at last." — Whitman, Leaves of Grass. 

We sometimes grow vain enough to think that 
we really own a part of this old earth when we 
have a title to a piece of land. Perhaps the fol- 
lowing from Emerson will teach us who can really 
own part of the earth: 

"The charming landscape which I saw this morning is indubitably 
made up of some twenty or thirty farms. Miller owns this field, Locke 



48 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



that, and Manning the woodland beyond. But none of them owns the 
landscape. There is a property in the horizon which no man has but he 
whose eye can integrate all the parts; that is, the poet. This is the best 
part of these men's farms, yet to this their warranty-deeds give no title." 

The following poem brings out the same idea, 
and certainly places poverty not on the one who 




THIS SO-CALLED OWNER A GOOD TENANT TO NATURE. 



does not own titles, but who cannot really assimi- 
late and own and possess a beautiful landscape; 
Emerson also proves that materially speaking, 
mother earth owns us, and it is only a question of 
time when she will take us back into her body 
out of which we came: 



POSSESSION OF THE SOIL 49 



"Bulkeley, Hunt, Willard, Hosmer, Meriam, Flint, 
Possessed the land which rendered to their toil 
Hay, corn, roots, hemp, flax, apples, wool, and wood. 
Each of these landlords walked amidst his farm. 
Saying, ' 'Tis mine, my children's and my name's. 
How sweet the west wind sounds in my own trees! 
How graceful climb those shadow's on my hill! 
I fancy these pure waters and the flags 
Know me, as does my dog: we sympathize; 
And I affirm, my actions smack of the soil.' 

"Where are these men.'' Asleep beneath their grounds; 
And strangers, fond as they, their furrows plow. 
Earth laughs in flowers, to see her boastful boys 
Earth-proud, proud of the earth which is not theirs; 
Who steer the plow, but can not steer their feet 
Clear of the grave. 

"They added ridge to valley, brook to pond. 
And sighed for all that bounded their domain; 
'This suits me for a pasture; that's my park; 
We must have clay, lime, gravel, granite-ledge, 
And misty lowland, where to go for peat. 
The land is well — lies fairly to the south. 
'Tis good, when you have crossed the sea and back, 
To find the sitfast acres where you left them.' 
Ah! the hot owner sees not Death, who adds 
Him to his land, a lump of mould the more. 
Hear what the Earth says: 

EARTH-SONG. 

" 'Mine and yours; 
Mine, not yours. 
Earth endures; 
Stars abide — 

Shine down in the old sea; 
Old are the shores; 
But where are old men? 
I who have seen much. 
Such have I never seen. 

" 'The lawyer's deed 
Ran sure. 
In tail. 

To them, and to their heirs 
Who shall succeed. 
Without fail, 
Forevermore. 



50 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



'Here is the land. 
Shaggy with wood, 
With its old valley. 
Mound and flood. 
But the heritors? 
Fled like the flood's foam. 
The lawyer, and the laws, 
And the kingdom. 
Clean swept herefrom. 

'They called me theirs. 
Who so controlled me; 
Yet e\'ery one 

Wished to stay, and is gone, 
How am I theirs, 
If they can not hold me, 
But I hold them?" 



'When I heard the Earth-song, 
I was no longer brave; 
My avarice cooled 
Like lust in the chill of the grave," 

Emerson. 



CHAPTER XIII. 
TILLING THE SOIL. 

Here's to deep-plowing, shallow-cultivation, 

Tillage, manures, diversification. 

Cotton a surplus croj), plenty of meat — 
To Southern farmers enjoyment complete! 

During the early history of man's existence 
on the earth, he no doubt roamed over prairies 
and hills and through valleys eating the natural 
fruits of mother earth just as other animals did. 
But as he grew in wisdom his wants multiplied, 
and soon he began to work out plans to have a 
variety of things to eat, all growing in the same 
locality. This in time necessitated moving plants 
from one place to another, and of gathering seeds 
from different places and ])utting them near the 
place he had begun to call home. The planting 
of trees and seeds necessitated digging in the earth, 
which soon led to what we know now as tilling the 
soil. This practice is no doubt almost as old as 
any other of man's practices on the earth. From 
the earliest records we find of man in history, he 
was conducting some kind of agriculture; we con- 
clude that it belongs to the pre-historic arts. When 
we take this view of the matter, the mere sight of a 
man plowing in the field over there means more to 
us. Now we can see in this simple farm operation 
the evolution of an art in which over 40% of the 
human race is engaged, and one which has grown 
from the simplest planting of a few plants and seeds 
to a great and important science. 



52 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



The Meaning of Tillage.— The dictionary defi- 
nition we may look for, and bring to the class 
written out with our opinion as to whether it is 
complete. The word must involve at least 
preparation of land for planting seed and then the 
keeping of land in condition suited to the growing 
of plants. Tillage may be said to be the manipu- 
lation of the soil by means of implements. When 




A DISC PLOW. 

{Besi plow for bottom lands and stubble fields.) 

we do anything to the soil to improve it, or to 
make it a better home for plants, we are said to be 
tilling it. 

Objects of Tillage. — Let each of us try to tell 
in our own language just why we till the soil. 
This will be a good lesson with which to supple- 



TILLJN(i THE SOIL 



53 



ment our language lesson for the day. Perhaps 
the most common objects of tillage are the follow- 
ing three: 1st, To change the texture of the 
soil and thereby conserve moisture and enable 
the air to penetrate down to the roots of the 
plants; 2nd, to mix thoroughly the manures 
that we may apply to the soil; 3rd, to pre- 
pare thoroughh^ the seed bed in order to make 
seeds germinate better after they have been 
planted; 4th, to keep down weeds and grass. 

We are already aware that too much or too 
little moisture at the roots of plants will cause 
quick and permanent injury. Tillage will help to 
regulate this water supply and give the plants a 
better opportunity to develop. In a later chapter 
we shall take up the relation of water supply to 
the different forms of humus applied to our lands. 




(Under side, shimming Jion' the heavy hoards are boiled logelher.) 

Tillage Implements. —These may be divided 
for convenience into the following groups: 1st, 
Plows; 2nd, Harrows and Cultivators, and 3rd, 



54 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



Drags, Crushers and Levelers. It will be well for 
each of us to bring in a list of implements under 
each heading with local names attached, and sug- 
gest in the class the use of each. Some are in the 
habit of calling everything that is done to the 
land, with horses and implements, plowing. They 
have not learned that plowing and cultivating 
are two separate and distinct processes, and are 
done for entirely different purposes. Here is 
another place we can use our dictionary to good 
advantage, in comparing the meanings of the 
two words — plowing and cultivating. 

Plowing. — Plowing is the process of breaking 
land after one crop has been made, and before 




GOOD BREAKING — MOULDBQARO TURN PLOW FOLLOWED By SUBSOlLgR, 



TILLING THE SOIL 55 

another is to be planted. It is an annual or semi- 
annual process for keeping the land well pulver- 
ized, and should not be confused with the culti- 
vation of the land. Plowing is a kind of turning 
over of the land, and turning under any rubbish 
or decaying old plants or vegetable matter, so that 
they will not be in the way of cultivating the new 
crop when it comes on. Plowing is sometimes 
synonymous with the popular term "turning" the 
land, or "breaking" the land. 

Cultivating. — By this time we have been pre- 




THE FIVE-TOOTH CULTIVATOR. 



pared to realize that cultivation is a process of 
itself, and is quite as important to the welfare of 
the farm as any other process. It is whatever we 
do to the land to make it a better place of living 
for the growing plants. Cultivation, or the 
stirring of the soil with cultivators, harrows or 
other like implements is usually designed to suit 
the age of the plant as well as the nature of the 
soil. For instance, young plants whose roots 



56 AGRICULTURE FOR THP: COMMON SCHOOLS 

have not developed could be cidtivated any rea- 
sonable depth without injury, but after the root 
systems have developed and covered a considera- 
ble portion of the soil under the surface, it will 
not do to cultivate deep, as the plants depend on 
the root systems for food and water supplies, 
and anj'thing that interferes with the roots inter- 
feres also with the food and water supply. This 
is the reason why it will not do to bar cotton after 
it has developed sufficiently to fill the bed in which 
it grows with root systems. 



CHAPTER XIV. 
FURTHER STUDIES ON CULTIVATION. 

Some Comparisons. — Suppose we take three 
small areas of land and plant in cotton or some 
other convenient crop. Fertilize and plant each 
of the spots alike, but cultivate one regularly 
and shallow, and leave another uncultivated as a 
check; and in the third plat cultivate deep all 
the time, from planting till laying by time. Take 
careful notes on the difference in the growth of 
the three plats. In this experiment, be sure to 
measure the depths of cultivation in each plat 
and at each time of cultivation, also measure the 
heights of plants each time. This will be quite 
convincing as to the value of proper cultivation. 

What Cultivation Really Does. — In order for 
plants to thrive as they should they must have a 
proper amount of underground air. We all know 
that a newly cultivated field will be more likely 
to permit air to penetrate the soil than a crusty 
surface that has not been cultivated. But each 
rain that comes in spring and summer especially 
during the growing period of the crop forms such 
a crust over the soft soil that it practically shuts 
out the air from the soil below this crust. Our 
crop seems to l)e checked in growth, and begins 
to look yellow if we do not get to it in a reasonably 
short time after the rain, and soon it becomes 
impossible to recover it from this check. The 
remedy is to cultivate as early after a rain as 



68 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

possible. Cultivation then opens the pores of the 
soil — so to speak — and lets the plants breathe 
more freely in the growing period. It also creates 
a mulch on the surface of the soil and enables it to 
hold the water much longer. A crusty surface 
causes the soil moisture to get away in mid- 
summer and helps to keep the soil cold in spring. 
A third thing that is accomplished by cultivation 
is to help increase the heat in the soil in spring 
when the young plants first begin to grow. The 
crust reflects the heat while the soft newly culti- 
vated soil absorbs the heat. 

Experiment to Show Heat. — In two small plats 
place a few cotton seed in early spring. Keep one 
well stirred and let a crust form over the other. 
See which one germinates the seed earlier, the 
cultivated or the uncultivated. This result can 
be compared with field conditions in the community 
in which the test was made. See which of the 
farmers keep their newly planted fields cultivated 
and which do not. Compare these facts with the 
stand each farmer gets. 

Time to Begin Cultivation. — Should this be 
after the young plants are already up or not? 
We shall claim most emphatically not. The time 
to begin cultivation is when the land needs it. 
Cultivation is a process for bettering the condition 
of the land ift which plants are to grow, and we 
should keep in mind the land in which the plants 
grow instead of trying to watch the plant to see 
when it needs attention. After the plant shows 
that it begins to need attention, we have needlessly 
neglected our dut.y far too long. The plant should 



FURTHER STUDIES ON CULTIVATION 5§ 

never show lack of attention. Our soil should be 
so well kept that the plant cannot show lack of 
cultivation. 




A SUUSOIL PLOW. 



Time to Stop Cultivation. — ^Cultivation should 
be kept up so long as we can pass through the 
crop without injury to the plants, at least till the 
fruit is beginning to mature. Most people lose a 
big per cent of the profits of the farm by stopping 
the cultivation a little too early. Sometimes the 
last cultivation itself determines whether the farm 
pays or not. Do not be afraid of interfering with 
the growth of the plant if you cultivate shallow 
enough. If the last cultivations come far apart, 
they should aim only to break the crust and let 
the air down in the soil. Sometimes cultivation 
injures crops because farmers cultivate a little 
too deep after having waited too long between 
cultivations. This is because the roots that have 
come near the surface of the soil are cut and 
the plant therefore suffers. A very shallow 



60 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

cultivation at this time will not cause this trouble. 
These suggestions apply to all farm crops. 
Something will be said as to the best methods of 
cultivating each of the several crops when these 
crops are reached in the text. The same general 
laws of cultivation apply to all crops and we should 
not fail to go over and over these till we thor- 
oughly understand them. Our knowledge of them 
will depend largely on experience with them rather 
than on reading about them, therefore it is quite 
necessary that we do something to enable us to 
see the truth of any statement about the cultiva- 
tion of the soil. 



CHAPTER XV. 

FARM implp:ments. 

At the present time when so many farm imple- 
ments are being placed on the market one hardlj^ 
knows just how to begin a study of them. By 
the time vou have learned how to use one kind of 




AGRICULTURAL STUDENTS STUDYING FARM MACHINES IN DETAIL. 

implement, it is out of date and replaced by a 
more modern and convenient one that does prac- 
ticall}^ the same kind of work with much more 
ease and less power often. This forces us to make 
a study of the principles involved in the use of 
farm implements rather than the analj^sis of the 
instruments themselves. How many of us who 



62 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

are now in the common schools remember the old 
Dixie Boy plows, or the still older Yankee turn 
plow, and yet they were all the talk when I began 
work on the farm several years ago. 

Plows Proper. — Not every kind of implement 
in front of which a horse goes back and forth 
through the field is a plow. Suppose we turn to 
our unabridged dictionary for a moment and see 
just what a plow is, or what the maker of the dic- 
tionary decided that it was. We shall be pretty 
apt to find that it is an implement drawn bj^ 
beasts of burden for the purpose of breaking 
the land, and i^reparing it for jjlantiiig. Here the 
definition will stop, or perhaps tell you that it is 
also used to cut ditches for draining, or to subsoil 
with. We may conclude with safety that a plow 
is an implement with which we plow, and not one 
with which we cultivate. Each member of the 
class in this study should examine a disc plow, 
a mould-board plow, and a subsoil plow, and 
bring a description of each to the class. These 
implements are the ones that make for better 
farming, and should be studied. 

We should visit two fields to get a good idea 
of the importance of proper plowing; one in which 
deep plowing has been practiced, and another in 
which onl^^ the small one-horse plow has been used. 
Get statistics on the yield per acre of these two 
fields, and bring in for a lesson in Arithmetic. 
We shall learn by this experience that our profits 
in farming depend more on going deeper into the 
soil than on spreading out over more acres. 

Cultivators. — This term originally meant a 



Farm implements 63 

triangular implement set with small shares^ drawn 
by a horse or other beast of burden and set to 
handles. Now it means any implement used for 
stirring the soil around growing plants, or for 
killing weeds about the growing plants. There 
are many kinds of cultivators, and we shall be 
refj[uired to examine at least two different kinds, 
one on the order of the Planet, Jr., and the other 
after the manner of the Little Joe harrow which I 
consider a very good cultivator for all crops in 




IHll SPKING-TOOTH CULTIVATOR. 



early spring before the grass begins to grow. We 
shall be able to find cultivators in any modern 
hardware store. A description is not necessary, 
because with every manufacturing concern the 
idea seems to be to get some small change in all 
implements as often as possible and hence keep up 
with the times. 

We have often thought that all rural schools 
should have as part of their equipment a set of 
farm tools for studv with classes, and be able to 



64 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

give regular weekly or bi-weekly demonstrations 
with them. This will be required in future as 
much as carpenters' tools are required to teach 
manual training. How easy it would be for stu- 
dents to get an idea of the value of a certain kind 
of farm implement, if they could see it in opera- 
tion ! 

Harrows. — The coming of the harrow^ marked 
wonderful progress in agriculture, and as it be- 
comes adapted to a greater variety of uses, its 
services to the art will be more and more felt and 




THE DISC HARROW THE GREATEST TOOL OF MODERN TIMES. 

appreciated. Harrows are essentially of three 
kinds, spike tooth harrows, spring tooth, and 
disc harrows. All of these have their special 
merit and all three kinds will be found on many 
of our Southern farms. 

An accurate description of each of the three 
kinds of harrows should be required of each 
member of the class, the description being based 
on actual observations and then corrected and re- 
written. We are often slow to appreciate how any 
object looks till called upon to give a description 
of it. Then we never forget. Do not restrict 



FARM IMPLEMENTS 65 

to any particular makes of harrows, but require 
that they be of the classes above referred to. 

What are Harrows? — A general definition would 
be farm implements designed to pulverize the 
soil preparatory to making a seed bed. There 
are many uses to which they are put, and we have 
an almost endless variety. Every conceivable 
shape and combination has been tried, from the 
wooden beam, with a few pegs driven in, to the 
steel frame with elastic steel teeth. Perhaps you 
will need several of these. Some to scratch, some 
to smooth, and some to cut. The object generally 
is to make fine the soil turned up by the plow. 
This work cannot be done too often nor too well. 

To make dust of the soil is desirable and profit- 
able. Often we need harrows to break the crust 
and destroy weeds and grass. They are great 
labor-saving machines. They enable one man and 
one team to do the work of several. Some har- 
rows are so made as to be used in covering grain, 
and enable the farmer to do this very rapidly and 
nicely. Sometimes they have seeding and guano- 
distributing attachments. These machines do 
the work of several hands at once. Those of an- 
other form are called cultivators, and are so con- 
structed as to greatly simplify the work of culti- 
vating many of our crops. 

Other Farm Implements. — Planting machines 
have almost entirely done away with hand planting. 
They do the w^ork more rapidly, accurately and 
cheaply than can be done by hand. The new 
implements are so constructed as to put seed all 
along in a continuous row, or drop them at any 



66 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



required distance in hills. By using different attach- 
ments, some of them may be made to plant almost 
any kind of seed. 

Manure spreaders are so arranged that they 
grind up or tear to pieces the coarse barnyard 
manures and distribute them quite evenl}'^ over 
the fields. The work is much better done than 
can be done by hands and forks. Here, as in all 




FARM DEMONSTRATION AGENTS TESTING OUT NEW IMPLEMENTS. 

good machines, there is a great saving in labor. 
Mowing machines, horse rakes, hay tedders, 
stackers and unloading conveniences are so well 
known and appreciated that we need only mention 
them as a part of the march of progress on the 
farm. No farmer would think of harvesting a 
large crop of hay bj^ hand. Hay presses make it 
possible to handle hay with great ease, and greatly 



FARM IMPLEMENTS 67 

reduce the storage room required, but a cheap 
power press is still much to be desired. Inventive 
genius has done wonders in solving the question 
of handling small grain. From cutting with the 
hand sickle, separating with the flail, or horses' 
feet, and winnowing with the wind, we have ad- 
vanced until now the grain is cut by the self- 
binder and delivered ready for the shock, or cut, 
threshed and sacked ready for the miller. These 
wonderful machines are run by self-traveling en- 
gines, propelling themselves and the machinery. 




ONE HORSE PLANTER. 

(Drops seeds in hills or in drills.) 



These are used only on large grain fields. Yet they 
are a part of the farm equipment possible, and 
affect the price of the grain produced. The hand- 
ling of the corn crop is being greatly simplified. 
Instead of the labor of pulling the fodder and ears 
by hand, shucking and shelling in the same la- 
borious wa3^ the machine does it well-nigh all. 
The stalk is cut and fed to the shredder. This 
machine takes off the ears, shells and sacks the 
grain, and shreds the stalk, shucks and blades 
into excellent hay. 



68 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

In gathering and preparing cotton for the mar- 
ket, comparatively httle advance has been made. 
We still pick it by hand, gin it with saw gins, and 
bale it in rude packages, unwieldy and unsightly. 
New processes are being tried for the improve- 
ment of the bales. Inventive genius may yet suc- 
ceed along these lines. As soon as the cotton 
leaves the producer's hands, all this is changed. 
The huge compress takes the bale in its embrace, 
and hands it out reduced in size. Thus the rail- 
roads and ship companies can carry three times 
as many, and the cost of transportation is thereby 
greatly reduced. When we enter the cotton fac- 
tory, we find ourselves in wonderland. Mar- 
velous machines, that almost seem to think and 
speak, manipulate this fiber of the farm into a 
thousand useful fabrics. 




A THRESHER AT WORK ON A SOUTHERN FARM. 



FARM IMPLEMENTS 69 

So we find at every step, from the hoe handle 
to the steam thresher, improved machinery which 
enables the farmer to cut down his expenses, do 
better work, and run up his profits. It would be 
just as sensible to expect the traveling public to 
abandon the Pullman sleeper for the old-time 
lumbering coach and six, as to expect the farmer 
who understands his opportunities to continue his 
old wa}^ of farming. The manufacturer could as 
well afford to exchange the spinning jenny and 
power loom for the old-time hand spinning wheel 
and hand-shuttle loom, as the farmer of today 
can afford to ignore the mower and reaper. 

The Cotton Picking Machine. — This may well 
be considered in the list of farm implements. 
While the success of such a machine is not yet 
assured, some cotton has been picked commer- 
cially by several makes, and we have no right to 
doubt that their success is a possibility. Some 
considerable discussion has been brought about as 
to whether the suction picker or the spindle 
picker is the more likely to win out. These two 
principles are the only principles on which pickers 
seem to have been constructed, and the spindle 
is too destructive to the plants, and will not per- 
mit of two pickings perhaps, while the suction is 
too tedious and slow, though it will pick much 
more than four or five men. Cotton picked with 
the machines has to be treated differently from 
that picked by hand, and this fact will perhaps 
delay the coming of the machine into general use. 
It has much more trash than cotton picked by 
hand and therefore must have a cleaning attach- 



70 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

nient to the gin before it is permitted to run through 
the gin. 

The Dixie and the Price-Campbell are the two 
pickers about which much has been said and 
written, and they are perhaps the best machines 
yet invented for picking cotton. They are both 
operated by means of revolving spindles, which 
twist the cotton out of the bolls, after which a 
rapid moving fanner brushes it back into a holder. 
This holder is emptied at regular stations up and 
down the rows of cotton, — usualh^ at the ends of 
the rows where they are short. These pickers 
seem to crush the cotton plants, and riddle many 
of them, so that it is not easy to go over the same 
field the second time with them, especially if the 
plants are in any way brittle. 

The Care of Farm Implements. — Tools left 
out in sunshine and rain lose, in a few years' 
time, more in value than it would cost to build 
a shelter. The wooden parts ver}^ soon begin to 
decay. The iron and steel rust, and are thus 
injured. The oxygen in the air is no respecter 
of men or tools. Its gnawing tooth is never idle. 
A little care spent in keeping tools of all kinds 
well painted, will be found to pay well. This is 
particularly true of the wooden parts, but often 
applies to the metal also. No skill is required in 
doing this kind of painting. The paint can be 
purchased ready mixed, of any desired color. Any- 
one can put it on. It will pay to do this about 
once a year on tools that are much used. This 
work can be done on rainy days, or other odd times, 
without interfering with the regular work. 



FARM IMPLEMENTS 71 

Relation of Skilled Labor to the Use of Farm 
Implements. — In buying new and improved im- 
plements, we must alw\\vs have due regard to the 
intelHgence of the laborer who is to use them. 
This consideration again emphasizes the need of a 
technical education among farmers. An educated 
brain is a power. A trained hand is valuable. 
Unite both of these in one man, and you have the 




MACHINERY SHED ON A SOUTHERN FARM. 



possibility of doing wonders. In such cases the 
brain gives increased utilitj^ to the machine, and 
the machine gives increased capacity to the brain. 
Machinery does not require feeding or clothing, 
hence it is generally more economical than hand 



72 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

labor. If kept in order and properly handled, it 
never makes mistakes. 

It requires more human strength and animal 
power to do sorry work with a sorry tool than it 
does to do good work with a good tool. We do 
not advise buying everything new that is offered, 
but when a tool has been tried and proven to do 
more work or' better work, or both, if the price is 
reasonable, you want that tool. Always require 
a guarantee that the machine will do what it 
claims to do. The market is at all times full- 
stocked with failures and humbugs. Farmers have 
caught their full share of these bugs. 



CHAPTER XVI. 
THE PLANT. 
Materials. — There is no time when we shall 
not be able to get ample material for lessons on 
plants, especially if we have planned our lessons 
a little ahead. Several small packages of various 
kinds of seeds are always useful and should be on 
hand. They should consist of corn, cotton, beans, 
peas, vetch, clover, alfalfa, and as many others as 
can be conveniently found. Saucers, or small 
shallow plates, may be 
used for germination 
tests. Try to have in 
the school room at all 
times some kinds of 
flowers in bloom. This 
will not be found a 
very hard task if we 
will take time by the 
forelock and plant 
them in boxes, jars 
and other vessels. No 
one can teach about 
plants without having 
plants present, though 
have tried to actually 





DEVICE FOR SEED TESTING. 



thousands of teachers 
teach about them from 
pictures in books, when plants were so plentiful. 
In order to have everything convenient for 
growing flowers, we should have in addition to the 
above, several flower pots or boxes, — the boxes 
being preferable if they can be made at school by 



74 AGRICFLTlllE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

the bo3^s and girls. We should also have some 
dilute manure which should be obtained from 
some lane or passage way that cattle use going to 
and from pasture. The best form for this manure 
is to sweep up some earth with the manure and 
put in pots, after diluting with leaf-mould or some 
rich earth. This will grow the best flowers, and 
will establish a practice of making fine flowers 
for home use. Do not get the manure till it has 
been trampled into dust, and can hardly be 
distinguished from dust. 

In early spring wild flowers can be secured for 
a study of parts of plants, which should be taken 
up as early as possible. These should be trans- 
ferred to boxes and left growing just as they are 
found in the woods. 

Parts of Plants. — All plants may be divided into 
the four general parts: 

Roots, 

Stems, 

Leaves, 

Flowers. 

Each of these parts may be sub-divided into 
other parts as we may deem fit. Surely our 
knowledge of these parts will arouse our interests 
sufficiently to cause us to inquire into each part, 
and see what is there. 

The Roots. — Place roots on the desk before us 
and see just how" they are constructed. Who will 
be the first to find out if there are any very small 
roots fastened on the larger ones.^ Of what use 
can the plant make of these tiny little rootlets.^ 
The}" seem almost too small for anything, and yet 



THE PLANT 75 

the plant owes its very life to them. See whether 
they cover the entire length of the roots or only 
part. Do they go to the tip of the root.^ Through 
the intimate union of these small roots with the 
soil, they are able to withdraw from the soil the 
minute particles of water necessary to the life of 
the plant. The older parts of the roots take no 
part in the process of absorption. The young roots 
of the plants absorb very little moisture except 
in the region of the fine root-hairs or the zone in 
which they usually grow. 

In the water that the small roots thus absorb 
are carried in solution the minerals necessary for 
the food of the plant. No plant can take food 
that is not in solution. Plants do not take food 
into their systems that is not good for them. 
There may be in solution many minerals not good 
for the plant, but the plants exercise a choice 
through the peculiar selective power of the cells. 
The cell walls can perhaps take in every thing in 
solution, but living protoplasm through which 
the material must pass before it can benefit the 
plant, excludes certain substances, while allowing 
others to pass through more or less readily. The 
rejected matter is exhaled through the leaves of 
the plant. 

Solutions must not be too strong, as they will 
permanently injure these small root-hairs. In 
fact the food that is supplied to the plant must be 
properly diluted, so that the roots will extend 
and manifest thrift, if the best results are to be 
secured. This should suggest the importance of 
properly distributing fertilizers in the drill rows. 



76 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 







GROWING PLANTS. 



THE PLANT 77 

and not putting them down with drills to be left 
unmixed with the soil. A plant is tenderest when 
it first begins to grow, and any strong solution 
of chemicals proves detrimental to its growth 
and health, at this time. This question of method 
of putting commercial and other fertilizers in the 
soil will be studied again under the heading of 
fertilizers. 

Kinds of Root Systems. — In order to study 
the diiferent ways plants develop root systems, we 
may take before us, a root of a cotton plant and 
one of a corn plant. What do we find as to the 
essential differences of the methods of growth of 
these two plant roots .'^ Does the corn plant have 
any central root around which there are many 
branches? Does the cotton? The large central 
root of the cotton is called a tap root. Has the 
corn plant a tap root? A number of plant roots 
should be studied in order to find out to which 
class they belong. 

Some plants are able to gather nitrogen on the 
roots. Can anyone tell what class of plants has 
this power? Name as many legumes as you can. 
Something more will be said about this class of 
plants in another chapter. Some plants that creep 
along on the earth, grow roots at every joint 
almost. Can someone tell the name of one plant 
that does this? We are to collect up samples of 
grasses and running plants that have this habit. 

Aerial Roots. — Some plants have roots that 
never reach the soil, but gather food for the plants 
from the air. These are called aerial roots. This 
form of roots is usually found on climbing plants, 



78 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

the roots becoming supports or filling the place 
of tendrils. The trumpet creeper is one of the 
plants that has this kind of roots, and some one 
may bring some of it to the class. Other kinds of 
plants have aerial roots only and are therefore 
known as air plants. Among these may be men- 
tioned the tropical orchids. 

It will be well for us to try to get up with some 
common plant the complete root system and see 
just how much more extensive it is than the stem 
and branches above ground. This will enable us 
to realize the importance of having a roomy and 
comfortable place for the roots to grow. It will 
also incidentally impel us to make better prepara- 
tions for the growing of better field, forest, and 
garden crops. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

THE PLANT: STEMS, LEAVES AND 
FLOWERS. 

In this chapter we shall make general observa- 
tions on the nature and growth of these organs of 
plants, and have a few lessons in Botany in another 
chapter. It must also be borne in mind that there 
are so many kinds of plants, and these have so 
many kinds of flowers, leaves, and stems that it 
will not be practical nor desirable to give in a 
short outline like the present text more than 
fruitful suggestions for further work by student 
and teacher. 

The Stem. — Practically all the stems in agri- 
cultural plants can l)e studied from specimens 
taken from the fields and gardens, and this should 
be done. It never paj's to pass over a lesson on 
any phase of plant life without the proper illus- 
trative material, and we will succeed in our study 
in proportion to our willingness to collect such 
material and wisely use it. 

What is the definition of a stem? Some 
authorities say it is that part of the plant that 
grows in the opposite direction to the root. This 
is not a bad definition. Suppose we examine 
several plants to see if we shall be able easily to 
find exceptions. The stem in growing upward is 
seeking light and air while the roots in their 
downward growth are seeking food and drink for 
the plant. In form the stem is generally round 



80 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

or cylindrical, though there are exceptions. Pupils 
will be required to find and name at least one 
exception. 

Kinds of Stems. — Stems are divided into many 
classes as well as kinds. We may class them 
according to their ability to hold themselves erect. 
Those that cannot do so are called vines. Those 
that can are divided into herbs, shrubs, and trees. 
This latter classification is based on the nature, 
duration, and mode of branching. Those that 
die down to the earth every year are called herbs. 
Those whose stems live through the year are called 
trees or shrubs according to circumstances. If 
the branches live through the year and arise from 
the main stem or trunk we call the plant a tree. 
But if the branches come from the ground or from 
near the ground it is called a shrub. When this 
gets very bushy the plant is called a bush. 

We shall bring before the class a herb, and 
shrub, and let the class in turn go before or to the 
tree and study it. In Agriculture, most of our 
crops are herbs, though the subject has come to 
include forestry and horticulture, and now may 
incorporate all three classes of plants. 

Leaves. — The leaves are the parts of the plants 
that aid primarily in the process of nutrition, or 
the proper assimilation of foods. They are also 
the lungs of the plants, so to speak. In Agri- 
culture, the plants that are called forage plants 
have their greatest value in their leaves, and the 
leaves usualh^ make the bulk of forage plants. 
Leaves indicate their state of health by their 
color, which should be in most cases a rich green. 



THE PLANT: STEMS, LEAVES AND FLOWERS 



81 



The richness of their color is directly related to 
the supply of food. When the food is lacking in 
nitrogen, the leaves will usually show this by 
exhibiting a light yellowish green. The health of 
the plant will usually be indicated by the leaves, 
and we should give special attention to the needs 
of these important organs. 

The Flowers. — The flowers are the organs of 
reproduction; and in farm crops they generally 
develop into the val- 
uable part of the 
crop. All the grains, 
the f r u i t of the 
legumes, cotton, and 
horticultural pro- 
ducts are the direct 
result of the flower. 
The success of these 
plants depends on the 
success of the flow- 
ers. Flowers are 
said to be only mod- 
ified leaves and as- 
sume definite func- 
tions of reproduction 
after they have been 
adapted for this w ork. 
Parts of the Flow- 
er. — Complete flow- 
ers are those that have the four parts, calyx, corolla, 
stamens, and pistil. All others are said to be in- 
complete. These parts of the flower will be 
studied at length under the proper heading. It 




USE THE COTTON BLOSSOM FOR A LESSON IN 
BOTANY. 

1. Petal. 2. Sepal. 3. Ovary. 4. Ovules. 
5. Pistil. 6. Stamens. 



82 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

is important to know at this time that flowers 
have male and female organs, and a careful study 
of these organs is quite necessary to the improve- 
ment of farm crops. Ignorance of these has cost 
our farmers a great deal of money annually, and 
we should know how to save this loss. Varieties 
of corn and cotton are kept pure only by keeping 
them from crossing, and we should learn how 
crosses are made by wind and insects. 

Let each of us bring some pollen to the class. 
Pollen is the fine dust that is shaken from the 
stamens of flowers such as corn tassels, which are 
the male organs of the corn. The silks which are 
fastened to the young cob are the female organs. 
Before the young grains can grow, or even form, 
the pollen must get on the silks. The wind usu- 
ally blows the pollen into the air, and it afterward 
settles on the silks. This is then called wind- 
pollinated. Pollination may be done by hand, or 
by insects. Later we shall have some exercises 
in Botany, and shall then pollinate some flowers. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 
MANURES AND FERTILIZERS. 

It is possibly well for us to consider here that 
the modern practice of applying fertilizers to our 
farm lands is a new thing in the development of 
Agriculture. Peruvian guano was first intro- 
duced into the United States in the year 1845, and 
the year following Mr. David Dickson of Hancock 
County, Georgia, seeing an advertisement of it 
in the old American Farmer, published at Balti- 
more, bought three sacks of it and finding that 
it paid him well, continued to increase his use of 
it till 1855 or 1856, "and then went into it fully". 
This is perhaps undoubtedly the first time that 
commercial or concentrated fertilizers were used 
in the southern United States. 

Manures. — Manure is anything w hich has once 
been a part of plants or animals, or both, but is now 
decayed or decaying. Rotting vegetable or animal 
matter of any kind is more or less a manure. The 
word is generally used to mean the refuse from do- 
mestic animals. Hence we speak of horse manure, 
cow manure, sheep manure, hog manure, and so 
on. The general name of all these is lot or stable 
manure, sometimes called barnyard manure. When 
these substances decay they become soluble in 
water and then furnish plant food. Thus they 
cause plants to grow very rapidly. Having once 
been plants, they are apt to furnish all the kinds 
of food needed, and about the right quantity of 
each. The voidings from animals are rich in the 



84 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

elements needed for plant-building. This is par- 
ticularly true of the liquid. Hence, by using some 
vegetable waste, such as leaves or straw, or even 
sawdust, to absorb the urine, we greatly increase 
the quantity of stable manure. We also improve 
the quality. The liquids are already dissolved. 
The solids must become so before we are helped 
by them. Farmers who fail to use the liquid 
manure from their cattle lose the best half. The 
solid or liquid voidings may be kept together or 
separate, but neither should ever be lost. If both 
are preserved together, we have a perfect or com- 
plete manure, suited to almost every plant, and 
to every kind of soil. We have already shown 
that a very small amount of a needed constituent 
will exert a great influence in the growth of any 
plant. Small quantities of soluble manure may 
thus increase the crop. Sometimes we get two or 
three times the yield by adding a small quantity 
of manure. 

The Soil in its Relation to Manures, — No part 
of the earth's surface may be considered soil till 
it has decaying and decayed vegetable and animal 
matter in it. Sometimes, through careless farm- 
ing, this valuable material is permitted to be 
reduced to a minimum. This decaying matter 
forms the best part of the plant food existing in 
the soil, and forms also an invaluable material for 
the physical condition of the soil. The land may, 
however, be so treated that it will have very little 
of this material in it, or in fact very little plant 
food of any kind. 

Again, there may be plentiful supplies of 




NATURE S TOOTHSOME SPRING TONIC- 



MANURES AND FERTILIZERS 85 

mineral substances, but a lack of ammonia, and the 
crops will be poor. Supply this need and the crops 
will be bountiful. A field of wheat containing 
fifty acres, lacking this ammonia, might only be 
able to yield a crop of ten or twelve bushels per 
acre. Use some stable manure, costing about 
three dollars per acre, and the 3'ield is often run 
up to twenty or thirty bushels per acre. We 
thus have a profit of ten to twenty dollars per 
acre, or five hundred to a thousand dollars on fifty 
acres, from the use of one hundred and fifty 
dollars. 

This wonderful change was brought about in 
part by supplying the lacking constituent of plant 
food, but this was not all that was done. There 
were in the decaying manure microbes which 
caused a process of fermentation to begin in the 
soil. This created acids and gases, which helped 
to decompose the plant food already abundant in 
the soil. But they were not soluble before, and 
could not be used by the plant. Now they are 
made soluble, and the power of the soil to produce 
crops is greatly increased. This fermentation 
changes the soil much as yeast changes the dough. 
Thus we get from the use of stable manures bene- 
fits far beyond the cost of the plant food in them. 
To get the full benefit from them, they should 
never be allowed to get wet, or be leached by rains, 
before they are put in the fields. The most solu- 
ble part is always the most valuable part. As 
soon as they get wet this part is dissolved into the 
water. If the water is permitted to run through, 
it carries this away with it. Millions of dollars' 



86 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

worth of the very best plant food is lost in this 
way everj^ year. It either soaks into the earth 
or evaporates into the air. In either case the farm- 
er loses it. 

Manures Should be Kept Dry. — Manures of all 
kinds should be kept under shelter, and only 
given enough water to assist in the rotting. If 
properly handled, the urine will generall}^ supply 
this. When taken from the shed or barn, the 
manure should be spread broadcast upon freshly 
plowed ground, and harrowed in. If this cannot 
be done at once, then as soon as can be. Plow 
the ground, so as to get the manure mixed with 
the soil as soon as practicable. More or less 
loss is going on until this is done. The advan- 
tages of spreading the manure are many and 
important. We have spoken of the fermenta- 
tion and its good effects upon the soil in turning 
loose locked-up stores of plant food. We can see 
at once that this can be done better if the manure 
is mixed with all the soil than if it be confined 
to narrow streaks and spots. Again, plant roots 
go everywhere through the soil, seeking food. If 
the supply of food is uniform, the crop will be so 
and the plants will be healthier. If the manure 
be only in the row or hill, then only those roots 
which are there can get any good from it. So we 
lose very much by using manure in drills or hills. 

Another great gain in keeping manure dry is 
in the handling and hauling. One ton of manure 
will easily absorb several tons of water. Many 
farmers pay more in labor and in money for hand- 
ling and hauling the water than the manure. 



MANURES AND FERTILIZERS 



87 



Live Stock and the Supply of Manure. — The 

qiiantitj' and quality of the manure depends 
somewhat upon the feed. Cattle take away very 
little from the available plant food in the vege- 
table matter fed to them. They consume chiefly 
the elements wdiich come from the air. They 
add to the manure waste material from their 




A MONEY MAKER. 



blood, flesh and bones, which increases the value. 
Hay and grain foods, such as cotton-seed meal, 
wheat bran and oil cake, support the cow w ith only 
part of their contents. A large part of these and 
of all other food substances passes on to the manure 
heap, rich in all the elements of plant food. This 



88 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

has been rendered more soluble by the processes 
of digestion. A ton of cotton-seed meal will give 
flesh to the cow and increase the flow of milk, 
improve the yield of butter, and furnish nearly 
as much for plant food after being fed to the cow 
as before. The cow has taken some, and added 
some from the waste of her own system. 

It is hardly possible to keep up a high standard 
of fertility on our farms without the aid of cattle. 
The cow seems to be the cheapest guano factory 
the farmer can patronize. She gathers up from 
the highways and the byways, pastures and hedges 
and odd corners much that would be lost. Cattle- 
growing has been a leading feature of farming in 
all ages and countries. We might sum it up this 
way: Grow grass to feed cattle, to make manure, 
to make the land rich, so that we can grow more 
grass to feed more cattle to make more manure, 
to make the land richer, to grow more grass, and 
so on forever. 

Green Manures. — When we plow under a 
growing or partly green crop it is called green 
manure. Sometimes this term is applied to stub- 
ble. In any case while barnyard manure is 
suited to all crops, it is not the only good manure. 
All decaying vegetable matter makes the soil 
richer. Stubble and trash of all kinds should 
be plowed in. They keep the soil porous and 
warm, as well as add some plant food. Some 
plants take nitrogen from the air and leave it 
in the soil. Clovers and leguminous, or pod- 
bearing, plants generally have this power. Cow- 
peas are very valuable for this purpose. Very 



MANURES AND FERTILIZERS 89 

poor soils have been made rich by sowing a pea 
crop after a grain crop for a few years. The 
vines are good for manure, and help to enrich the 
soil, if left to die and decay on the field; but the 
most good is done by the roots. The vines are 
so much more valuable for hay that it is not good 
farming to let them rot. They are worth about 
fifteen dollars per ton as hay, and about four dollars 
and fifty cents for manure. It is poor economy 
to lose this difference — about ten dollars per ton. 
But we need not lose anything at all. Save the 
vines and feed them, and thus get the hay value 
in full and the manure value in addition thereto. 
The droppings from cattle fed with pea-vine hay 
are very rich. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS. 

Animal Matter as Fertilizers. — Not only are 
vegetables valiial)le for manure-, but decayed 
animal matter also is rich in plant food. Even 
the bones and hoofs and horns of animals are 
valuable for manuring purposes. They form 
the basis of many of the best guanos. Rotting 
fish are largely used for the same purpose. 
Manures and fertilizers are often spoken of 
as though they were the same. Strictly speaking, 
they are different in some important respects. 
Manures are the result of natural decays. Fer- 
tilizers are chemical compounds. The plant 
food they contain is made soluble by strong acids. 
Animal bones are ground fine, and the acid is 
added to the flour. By the action of the acid, 
more or less of the phosphoric acid, potash, lime 
and mineral elements is made soluble in water. 
These compounds are called acid phosphates, 
superphosphates, and so on, according to the quan- 
tity of the different elements. If sulphuric acid is 

used, they are called 
sulphates. If nitric acid 
is used, they are called 
nitrates. If carbonic 
acid is used, then they 
are called carbonates, 
and so on through the 
list. 

If the substance used 
with the acid is potash, 
then we have the nitrate 
or sulphate or muriate 




THE OUTGO. 



COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS 91 

of potash. If soda was the base, then we have 
nitrate of soda. If Hme, we have sulphate or 
carbonate of Hme. 

These chemical compounds are carefully ana- 
lyzed, and the exact proportions of the differ- 
ent elements made known. This soluble percentage 
of each plant food must be plainly marked on the 
sack or barrel, and guaranteed by the parties 
selling. This is for the protection of the farm- 
er. By looking, he can see what he is purchasing. 
They are generally sold by the ton of two thou- 
sand pounds. Thus, eight per cent, phosphates 
means that in a ton there are one hundred and 
sixty pounds of soluble phosphate; two per cent, 
potash means that in a ton you will get forty 
pounds of potash. In a ton of phosphate we get 
about these quantities of plant food — two hundred 
to two hundred and forty pounds. Now, if we 
distribute these, as is the custom, at about the 
rate of one hundred and fifty to two hundred 
pounds to the acre, we are putting on each acre 
about ten or fifteen pounds of phosphate, and two 
and one-half to four pounds of potash per acre. 

We expect thes.e small quantities to cause a 
great increase in yield. Often they do. We often 
have four to six thousand stalks of corn per acre, 
and ten to fifteen thousand stalks of cotton. If 
the roots find all we give per acre, how much pot- 
ash would one stalk get.^ Two thousand corn 
stalks will divide each pound among them. Four 
thousand cotton stalks must feed on each pound. 

Ammonia Necessary to a Complete Fertilizer. — 
Experience shows that, besides potash, phos- 



92 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

phoric acid and lime, we need nitrogen for very 
many crops. This is added to the phosphate by 
the use of nitrate of soda, Peruvian guano, de- 
cayed fish, dried blood, cotton-seed meal, and 
many other substances. Plants seem to require 
that the nitrogen be given to them in the form of 
ammonia. We find this generally guaranteed on 
the sacks in about the same quantities as the 
potash — one and one-half to two and one-half, 
sometimes three per cent. This little change gives 
a new name to the compounds, and they are called 
complete fertilizers, or ammoniated guanos. It 
adds considerably to the cost per ton. It is very 
readily dissolved by water, and constantly tends 
to evaporate in the air, particularly if exposed to 
hot sunshine. 

Guano. — Among the nitrogen group of fer- 
tilizers comes guano, the excrement of the sea 
birds that inhabit certain coasts, especially the 
western coast of South America. The use of this 
material as has been suggested above, was first 
used in the United States in 1845, but it was used 
in great quantities in Peru long before that 
country was invaded by the Spaniards. A pam- 
phlet published in 1609 says "that no one was 
allowed under pain of death, to visit the Guano 
Islands during the breeding season, or, under 
any circumstances to kill the birds which yield 
this substance; and that overseers were appointed 
by the Government to take charge of the guano 
districts, and to assign to each* claimant his due 
share of the material". 

Guanos differ from other nitrogen producing 



COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS 



93 



fertilizers in the fact that they are natural products 
of the earth, produced from the deposits of millions 
of birds, or rotting fish bones, or both combined. 
They are generally found in tropical regions. 
They are very rich in nitrogen. This element 
determines their comparative value. Peru fur- 
nishes us with most of the 
highest grades. The name, 
however, is often applied 
to manufactured goods con- 
taining ammonia. Strictly 
speaking, they belong to the 
manures, for manures are 
made by natural processes; 
fertilizers by chemical pro- 
cesses. 

Difference Between Ma- 
nures and Fertilizers. — 

There is a radical difference 
between manures and ferti- 
lizers, and to the farmer 
this distinction means a 
great deal. What is made 
by chemical processes he 
cannot make. This he must 
buy. What is made from 
natural processes, he can 
make for himself. This he 
need not buy. If you un- 
derstand your business, you can mix your own 
fertilizers. You need not buy them ready mixed. 
Cotton-seed meal is a good source of ammonia 
for farms. 




a PLANT NOT FERTILIZED. 

b PLANT PROPERLY FERTILIZED. 



94 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

But there is another very important difference 
between manures and fertihzers. Manures make 
the soil richer at the same time that they make 
the crop larger. They do this by constantly add- 
ing to the soil much vegetable matter which, 
though not immediately soluble, will soon become 
so by the agencies already at work in the soil, 
and by the fermentation which they cause to set 
up in the soil. Thus, by nature's own methods 
the work of enriching the soil goes right on, while 
the soil is making the owner richer year by year. 

This is not the case with chemical fertilizers. 
They are prepared by a definite formula, and pre- 
pared to do a fixed amount of work and no more. 
They carry to the plant a small quantity of dis- 
solved food. This is all they can do. We have 
already seen how small this quantity is. They 
supply in some soils wliat is wanting and this is 
all they can do. They may, and very often do, 
increase the growing crop. They act like the iron 
in the blood. They make the plant healthy and 
strong, so that it sends out many active roots, 
which feed on the soil food, and thus a heavy 
growth is secured; but they make very little con- 
tribution to the permanent food supply of the 
soil. They have rather stimulated it to extra 
effort, and often it is left poorer. 

The long continued growth of heavy crops by 
the use of commercial fertihzers alone does not 
build up a high state of fertility. Now, we have 
in the first twelve inches of soil about four to 
eight thousand pounds of phosphoric acid, sixteen 
hundred pounds of potash, and from five hundred 



COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS 



95 




96 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

to four thousand pounds of nitrogen to each acre 
of land. The next twelve inches have rather more 
of all except nitrogen. What we need then is a 
system of culture which will make available these 
vast quantities of locked-up plant food. Using 
chemical fertilizers does not do this. Using home- 
made manure does help to do so. 

Chemical fertilizers are useful if properly used, 
and often pay a good profit on the investment, 
but we should never learn to depend entirely upon 
them. Southern farmers have enough ammonia 
in their cotton seed to supply not only their own 
needs, but to supply any farm in the United States. 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE propp:r use of manures and 

FERTILIZERS. 

It goes without saying that thousands of tons 
of good plant food go to waste every year on ac- 
count of careless methods of applying it to the 
soil. We have learned that manures help the 
physical condition of the soil as well as furnish 
the plant with food, and are therefore far more 
valuable than chemical fertilizers. When farmers 
realize this fact fully, they will renew their efforts 
to apply some manures to their land as well as 
to buy annually $18,000,000 worth of chemical 
fertilizers to put in our Georgia soils. 

Very much of the profit of farming comes from 
the skillful use of manures and fertilizers. Manures 
are generally coarse vegetable matter in process of 
decay. To get the fullest benefit from them, we 
must so direct this decay as not to lose any of the 
constituents of plant food. Some of these, the 
nitrogen and ammonia, for instance, will readily 
evaporate and thus be lost. Others, such as the 
potash, are readily dissolved and carried away 
with the water. But a certain quantity of water 
is needed to help the decaying process. 

Composts. — From our dictionary we may learn 
that composts means materials compounded or 
mixed together. To the farmer the term suggests 
certain mixing of definite kinds of barnyard 
manures, and in the south whole cotton seed, 
together with some lime or acids to hasten decay. 
It may consist of heaps of stable manure com- 



98 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

bined with other vegetable matter, mineral com- 
pounds or chemical fertilizers, or all of these at 
once. The object of composting is to reduce 
the manure so that it can l)e mixed more thor- 
oughly with the soil. The mineral and chemi- 
cal substances are used to absorb the ammonia, 
potash and other substances as the heap rots. 
The end in view is to get a resulting compost 
that will furnish all the elements of food in read- 
ily soluble condition. When these heaps are 
made they become very much heated, as the rot- 
ting process is slow burning. The heat at first 
hastens decay, but when very hot destroys the 
best elements of plant food. 




SMALL COMPOST DISTRIBLTTER. 



Best Method of Applying Compost or Manures. 

— The practice of having large compost heaps on 
the farm is about to pass away and we now find 
that we get better results by composting in the 
fields. Instead of costly work, long continued 
after the old style, we believe it to be better 
to carry the manure directly from the stalls or 
sheds and spread it upon the field, and if we 



THE PROPER USE OF MANURES AND FERTILIZERS 99 

wish to add other substances, do so as we dis- 
tribute or afterwards. It will be profitable to keep 
on hand German kainit, acid phosphate and gyp- 
sum, or land plaster, and sprinkle these over the 
manure as we clean the stalls or pile the manure 
under the shed. These will absorb all escaping 
gases. When it is not convenient to do so, nearly 
the same results may be obtained by mixing them 
in the field. 

The advantage of this method is that the chemi- 
cal reactions take place in the soil and help to 
make it loose. At the same time they cause other 
chemical changes in the soil itself. Another im- 
portant point in the use of manures is their appli- 
cation as to depth. Many have contended that 
they should be put deep down in the soil to pre- 
vent loss by evaporation. This idea is not well 
founded, because the fine soil is a wonderful ab- 
sorbent and readily holds all gases. Dust is the 
best destroyer of all odors or smells. Another rea- 
son why this is not best is found in the fact that 
the valuable part is the soluble part. Water tends 
to go down, and the general tendency is to carry 
all soluble elements with it. We find this illus- 
trated in the common farm ash barrel or hopper. 
We put the ashes in, pour the water on top, clear 
as crystal. In a short while this same water runs 
out at the bottom but not clear. It has taken the 
soluble potash from the ashes along with it, and 
is now a highly colored lye. 

So in the field the tendency is for the water to 
carry all soluble plant food downward. We say, 
the tendency, because capillary attraction and 



100 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 




ASH HOPPER; THIS IS THE WAY 
PLANT FOOD IS CARRIED. 



root action very greatly modify this. But this 
tendency is so strong that it is safe to apply most 
manures very shallow. Some do the best work 
when used entirely on top of 
the soil. The only danger in 
shallow- application is due to 
the fact that manure is use- 
less without water, and the 
seasons may sometimes dr^^ 
the soil below the manure. In 
such cases the manure can do 
no good, A safe rule is to ap- 
ply all manures shallow in the 
fall and winter, and a little 
deeper in spring and summer. 

The Relation of Fruiting to Proper Application 
of Fertilizers. — If a soil is very poor, or not rich 
in vegetable matter, much larger crops can be 
made by putting all the manures in the seed bed, 
because the roots will not spread a great deal. 
A thoroughly good seed bed is a most essential 
thing in the success of farming, and if the land is 
rich enough to cause the roots to spread to all 
parts of the middle, we must consider the whole 
field as a solid seed bed. In this case a matter of 
great value to the farmer is equal, thorough distri- 
bution. Every inch of soil will be filled with roots 
seeking food, and every inch should have food 
ready. If the manure is put in the drill, a strong 
plant is started, and calculations are made for a 
vigorous crop. When the fruiting season is reached 
and the demand for food is heaviest and every 
energy of the plant is strained in search of needed 




THIS CORN HAD TOO MUCH FERTILIZER AT PLANTING INSTEAD 
OF AT FRUITING SEASON. 



102 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

nourishment, then the roots are thrust out to the 
middle and find a soil much poorer than that 
in which the plant started. There is disappoint- 
ment. The plant begins to readjust. It can not 
secure the needed food. It throws off the young 
fruit. This reaction is always hurtful, sometimes 
ruinous. The limbs or leaves are already formed. 
Being tougher than the young fruit, they hold on,' 
while the fruit falls. Cotton-growers suffer im- 
mense loss in this way. Other plants may not show 
the harm so plainly in the fields, but they will in 
the barn. The wheat grains will be fewer, smaller 
and lighter. Corn will give nubbins instead of 
full ears. If all the soil had been alike, the growth 
would have been healthy and the crop better — 
less stalk and more fruit. 

Mixing Fertilizers in the Soil Essential. — 
Whether we apph^ fertilizers in the drill row or 
broad cast them, they should always be thoroughly 
mixed with the soil. As has just been stated in 
the paragraph above, the roots reach all parts of 
the soil and should find food wherever they 
reach. This food should be so placed that it may 
be supplied to the plant as the plant needs it. 
Strong chemical fertilizers will prove too strong 
for the young tender growing roots, and may 
retard the, growth of the plant, when large appli- 
cations are made. The larger the applications, 
the better should they be mixed with the soil. 

Chemical fertilizers are always costly and the 
farmer should get the greatest possible good from 
the first crop. This he cannot do if only a few of 
the plant roots reach the supply of food. All plants 



THE PROPER USE OF MANURES AND FERTILIZERS 103 

need most help when putting on fruit. Part of the 
food should always be reserved for the fruiting sea- 
son. For this reason many have felt that only 
a p^rt of fertilizers should be used when plant- 
ing. The other part should be put in when 
cultivating cultured crops, and used as a top- 
dressing on grain or grass crops. Experiments 
lean strongly to this theory. Whatever the method 
of using, the success will be greater if the soil and 
manure be thoroughly stirred together. 

Skill Should be Exercised in Using Large 
Quantities of Fertilizers. — The quantity to be 
supplied is an interesting question. We have 
already said that extremely small quantities 
of soluble plant food make great increase in the 
yield. Where a pound of potash, phosphoric 
acid or nitrogen has been given, to be divided 
among thousands of plants, the effect has been 
great. Does it hold true that we can increase 
the crop as we increase the foods .'^ It seems to 
be true. Many experiments seem to show that a 
ton of fertilizer per acre will give a larger clear 
profit on the money cost than 150 pounds. Good 
common sense and great skill are needed in using 
these great quantities. There must be a corre- 
sponding increase in the depth of the soil, the sup- 
ply of water, and number of plants per acre. 
The culture must be rapid and skilled. 

With proper care there seems to be no known 
limit to the quantity that may be profitably used. 
Market gardeners and truck farmers find it profit- 
able to cover the soil several inches with good sta- 
ble manure. More than forty tons per acre are 



104 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

sometimes used. After they liave mixed this 
thoroughl}^ with the soil, they sometimes add 
large quantities of chemicaP fertilizers. In this 
way they are able to grow many successful crops 
on the same soil in one year. The danger line 
does not seen! to lie in that direction. Strange 
as it may seem, it is in many cases true that rich 
soils show greater profits on high manuring than 
poor soils. This can be understood if we remem- 
ber the statement already made that soils are poor 
on account of bad mechanical conditions. These 
conditions do not give the added food a fair 
chance. The better crops your land is able to 
produce, and therefore the less it seems to need 
manure, the better it will pay you for high manur- 
ing. A healthy man can eat and digest a larger 
dinner than a delicate, sickly one. 

Soil Study Necessary to Good Results. — If we 

do not know our soils it goes without sa^'ing that 
we cannot know what to supply them with in 
the production of crops. All crops do not need the 
same food. While certain of the substances already 
named are found in all plants, they are not required 
in the same ({uantities by each. Again, the availa- 
ble plant food in all soils is not the same. Put these 
together and we see that very different amounts 
of certain substances would be needed to produce 
the best crops. If a soil is lacking in potash, but 
pretty well supplied with phosphoric acid, lime 
and nitrogen, you need only to supply the potash 
and get a good crop. This would be still more 
needful if the crop we wished to grow on that soil 
were one that requires a large quantity of potash. 



THE PROPER USE OF MANURES AND FERTILIZERS 105 

If two of these substances are lacking, then we 
must supply both. Simply supplying one would 
not secure a good crop. If potash and phosphoric 
acid are both wanting, then supplying the potash 
would not produce the crop If phosphoric acid 
alone be added, we will not get the crop; but if 
we add both the potash and the phosphate, we get 
the desired yield. 




FRUITS REQUIRE HIGH PERCENTAGE OF POTASH AND PHOSPHORIC ACID. 

We have some soils in which very little of 
either of the four needed elements is soluble. Such 
soils need a complete manure. Stable manure 
suits such soils. Ammoniated standard guano 



106 AGRICULTFRE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

suits such fields. So we find that different crops 
demand different help. Wheat needs am- 
monia as well as phosphate. Oats seem to do as 
well with phosphate alone in the fall or at sowing 
time, but all grains and grasses rejoice in a top- 
dressing of a highly ammoniated preparation in 
the spring, while growing rapidly. Indian corn 
does well with phosphate and potash. Grapes, 
watermelons and other fruits and many vegetables 
do best with large doses of potash and some phos- 
phate added. The cotton plant will do well with 
a complete fertilizer, but does not seem to care 
much if you leave out the nitrogen. The legumes 
generally get all the needed nitrogen from the air. 
They need potash and lime. 

Home Mixing. — Every school should secure 
small quantities of the various kinds of plant 
foods and mix in the school room before classes. 
Pupils should then mix for themselves small 
quantities of a perfectly balanced plant food and 
apply to some small garden spot. With proper 
conveniences, farmers could do their own mixing 
to great advantage and in this way each crop can 
be furnished with what it needs, and nothing be 
lost. The separate articles can be bought very 
much cheaper than ready-made mixtures, and 
about 25 per cent may be saved in this way. 
Phosphate flour, potash or kainit can be bought 
very cheap, if taken in car-load lots, unsacked. It 
is true that many will not need a car load, but 
several farmers can join to purchase their needed 
supplies. 

Plants do not create anything. All the growing 



THE PROPER USE OF MANURES AND FERTILIZERS 107 

crops do not add an ounce to the material world, 
nor does their death and consumption take away 
anything. They only change the form of the mat- 
ter. It is the farmer's place to direct in these 
wonderful changes, without which the world would 
soon die. If he does this wisely, he will be pros- 
perous and happy. If he does it ignorantly, he 
will be poor and unhappy. 



CHAPTER XXI. 
COMPOUNDING FERTILIZER FORMULAS. 

Ill order to get the most out of this chapter, 
it should be used in connection with Arithmetic. 
The calculations will prove more interesting and 
important than the pages of any book on abstract 
figures. Besides it will set us to thinking along 
lines that will enable us to improve our financial 
as well as mental condition, and will certainly 
prove a stimulus to the patronage of the school. 

The Basis of the Calculations. — Formulas for 
fertilizers show the amount of available plant 
foods in a hundred pounds. For instance, an 
8-2-2 formula means that the fertilizer has eight 
pounds phosphoric acid, two pounds nitrogen 
and two pounds potash available in each hundred 
pounds of the fertilizer. Suppose we wish to make 
or mix a ton of fertilizer of this formula out of 
acid phosi^hate, kainit and dried blood. We 
would have 

8 per cent of 2,000 lbs. equals 160 lbs. available phosphoric acid. 
2 per cent of 2,000 lbs. equals 40 lbs. available nitrogen. 
2 per cent of 2,000 lbs. equals 40 lbs. available potash. 

But the acid used will analyze 16% phos- 
phoric acid, the dried blood 14% nitrogen, and 
the kainit 12^/2% potash. In order to get the 
required number of pounds of each ingredient 
into the formula, we divide the total number of 
pounds of each ingredient that is to become 
available by the per cent of availabilit}^ guar- 
anteed in the several raw materials used. Of 
acid we would require 160 divided by 16%. To 



COMPOUNDING FERTILIZER FORMULAS 109 

make a table, that would be convenient for calcu- 
lation we tabulate as follows: 

160 Available acid -r 16% availability = 1,000 lbs. acid phosphate. 
40 Available nitrogen -r 14% availability = 285 lbs. dried blood. 
40 Available potash H- 12.5% availability = 320 lbs. kainit. 
Dirt or rich earth required for filler 395 lbs. 



Total 2,000 lbs. 

Some Exercises. — Suppose the pupils be re- 
quired to work out a similar problem, each pupil 
in the class selecting a separate problem to suit 
himself. One may take the problem to work out 
a formula for a 9-3-4 commercial fertilizer com- 
posed of acid phosphate analyzing 17%, nitrate 
of soda analyzing 16% and muriate of potash 
analyzing 50%. 

Another may take the formula 9-3-3 to be 
worked out from a combination of South Carolina 
dissolved phosphate rock 15% available, tank- 
age 6% available, and sulphate of potash 48% 
available. 

In the back of this book will be found the 
various percentages of availability of the several 
common fertilizers, from which at least a dozen 
problems should be made up. 

Suggestions for Home Work. — Pupils may 
bring to school the names of brands of fertilizers 
used on their own farms, together with the analysis 
of same. No better way could be devised to get 
patrons interested in the work of the school than 
to have them go over this work with pupils. 
Before this shall be done, however, be sure that 
the pupils thoroughly understand the principle, 



110 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

and can work out the problems without making an 
error. 

The Problem of the Filler. — This may or may 
not be used to get the required analysis. It will 
be easy enough to get the proper analysis and 
then leave out the filler. This in fact should be 
done where we do our own mixing at home. We 
should bear in mind, however, that fertilizers 
without filler are more concentrated and should 
be more thoroughly mixed with the soil in order 
to remove any possible danger to the young plants, 
especially if we make applications as heavy as 
400 to 500 pounds to the acre. With the exception 
of the extra cost of hauling and the freight, the 
filler would be preferable in most cases, because 
it does tend to reduce the strength of the fertilizer, 
without losing any of its value, or availability. 

Organic Nitrogens. — For long growing crops 
like cotton, some of the nitrogen should come 
from an organic source, such as cotton seed meal, 
dried blood, tankage or dried fish scrap. This is 
best because the quickly available fertilizers 
would all be dissolved and used up or washed 
away before the fruiting season came on. A top 
dressing should always be made with quickly 
available nitrate, such as nitrate of soda or 
sulphate of ammonia. 

It would therefore be best in compounding a 
fertilizer of this kind to let half of the source of 
nitrogen come from cotton seed meal and half 
from nitrate of soda, or a like combination from 
some of the other organic and chemical nitrogens. 
In making this calculation, we should bear in 



COMPOUNDING FERTILIZER FORMULAS 111 

mind that if we wish 20, or 30 or 40 pounds of 
nitrogen to the ton avaihible, 10, 15, or 20 pounds 
should come from one source and the same amount 
from the other, and proceed with the work just 
as above, remembering that on account of the 
different analyses each amount must be worked 
out separately. 



CHAPTER XXII. 

SOME OUTDOOR EXERCISES WITH 
FERTILIZERS. 

Most school exercises in fertilizers are conducted 
with flower pots or other vessels that hold a small 
quantity of soil and in which fertilizers may be 
inserted in any required quantity and proportion. 
This is an excellent method of showing before a 
class just how different plant foods affect the 
growth of plants. There are methods of doing 
work out doors that will prove interesting and as 
conclusive as any tests that can be made with 
pots. 

Materials to be Used.^For a test of this 
kind we must have some of the following ferti- 
lizers: Nitrate of soda, sulphate of ammonia, 
cotton seed meal, muriate of potash, kainit, 
acid phosphate, and slaked lime. We need have 
but small quantities of these for school tests and 
fertilizer companies will be glad to donate small 
quantities to the schools that will carry out the 
experiments. 

We should have a small area of about one- 
twentieth of an acre at the disposal of the school, 
and divide this up into small plots of 8x16 feet 
or some convenient form so they are all of uniform 
size. In order to have room for plants to grow, 
the plots should not be less than eight feet wide. 
The land should be medium and average soil 
for the community in which the school is located, 
and should be divided up into at least ten small 
plots or divisions, as follows: 



SOME OUTDOOR EXERCISES WITH FERTILIZERS 113 



Plot No. 


1. 


For no fertilizer. (Check plot.) 


Plot No. 


2. 


Nitrogen only. 


Plot No. 


3. 


Potash only. 


Plot No. 


4. 


Phosphoric acid only. 


Plot No. 


5. 


No fertilizer. (Check plot.) 


Plot No. 


6. 


Nitrogen and Potash. 


Plot No. 


7. 


Nitrogen and Phosphoric acid. 


Plot No. 


8. 


Potash and Phosphoric acid. 


Plot No. 


9. 


Nitrogen, Potash and Phosphoric Acid. 


Plot No. 


10. 


No fertilizer. (Check plot.) 



These plots should be fertilized ever}' year just 
the same, and should be the basis for many lessons 
ill Arithmetic. Pupils should work out the yield 
of each per acre basis, and the cost of each on the 
same basis, also the net gain and the total cost. 
In addition to these, they should have two plots 
of the same size on which they can test the value 
of barnyard manure as compared with field peas 
in the building up of soil. On one they should 
apply barnyard manure and on the other plow 
under field peas every other year, and the alternate 
years plant some other crop and apply the same 
amount of commercial fertilizer to each plot. 

It should be impressed upon us the fact that a 
test is worth more the longer it is conducted, and 
there should be some permanent record of such 
tests kept in some convenient place in the school 
room, so pupils can consult it with the least effort. 
As for the amounts of each of the above to apply, 
this should be worked out by pupils, on the basis 
of so much per acre, only it should be the same 
amount each vear, when once this has l^een set- 
tled. 

Crops. — The crop to be planted on such an 
area would be determined mostly by the location 
of the school. In Georgia, it should be corn and 



114 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



cotton ill the Coastal Plain and the Piedmont 
section, and wheat, oats, rye, and other small 
jrrains as well as corn in the hillv section and the 
mountains. The same crop need not necessarily 
be planted every year on the same place, but the 
same crop should be planted on all the plots in 
any given year, so that we could compare the 
value of the different kinds and combinations of 
fertilizers for the same crop. In fact this would 
be the only way we could compare the results 
with any degree of satisfaction. 

Application of the Fertilizers. — The amounts 
of the various fertilizers should be carefully weighed 
out and calculated on the acre basis some days 
before the application and stored in small sacks 
made by the girls. The sacks can be made out 
of yellow homespun which may be obtained for 
about 7 or 8 cents per yard, and it will take only 
two or three yards. The sacks can be made about 
8x12 inches, so they will hold quite enough for the 
tests. When the time comes for application, the 
pupils should carefully scatter the given quantities 
over the plots as uniformly as possible, keeping the 
dates of same, each year, and cultivate in order to 
mix thoroughly with the soil. 

Keeping Results. — Some difficulties will be 
experienced in getting these plots looked after in 
the summer months while there is no school in 
session. This can be arranged for, however, as 
it is being done in many places, by giving the re- 
sults of the plots to one of the boys who lives 
nearest the school if he will keep them clean and 
cultivated during the summer. The results them- 



SOME OUTDOOR EXERCISES WITH FERTILIZERS 115 

selves should always be collected in and measured 
or weighed as the case may be, by a committee of 
the class that is making the tests This committee 
should be appointed by the teacher or elected by 
the class or school. 

There are many ways of conducting tests of 
this kind, and we should never neglect an oppor- 
tunity of learning lessons of this kind by observa- 
tion rather than by a mere text book. Pupils 
ma,y remember some things in the text, but they 
can never forget the lessons that are learned by 
observing some simple lessons in soil fertility. 
If teachers prefer to experiment with pot cultures 
instead of plot work, they may do so with the 
greatest ease, letting the boys of the school make 
the boxes out of boards about three-quarters by 
eight inches. The boxes should be not more than 
ten inches square at the top. When such tests are 
made in pots, the fertilizers may best be applied 
by first dissolving them in water, and pouring 
gently into the soil in the boxes. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 
PLANTING OR SEEDING. 

Preparation. — The crop we wish to phint will 
suggest in a measure the details of how we are to 
prepare the land, but there are some general 
principles that apply to all crops alike. One of 
the most important considerations for a planter 
is the preparation of the seed bed. If this is 
properly done and care taken in planting, a 
good crop is generally assured. Then how shall 
we go about preparing our land for planting .f* 
We must realize that the conditions for plant 
growth, deep plowing and fine harrowing, and the 
weather have a great deal to do with our success 
or failure. Most of our crops need a deep mellow 
seed bed. To fail to provide this is to fail in our 
crop production. 

We should then, according to the best practice, 
plow our land deep in the fall in order to prevent 
winter washing. This will also help us to get 
rid of the insect life that winters in the soil, and 
will retard the growth of fungi that may be 
lurking in the soil, and waiting for the new crop 
in the spring. 

In Case of Winter Cover Crop. — Should we 
break our land deep in the fall as suggested above, 
and wish to put a winter cover crop on it, we may 
do so and thereby save much of our plant food 
from leaching out during the winter rains. This 
will, however, necessitate deep plowing again in 
the spring, unless our winter cover crop is expected 



PLANTING OR SEEDING 117 

to make our regular field crop for the coming 
spring. That is, if our winter cover crop should 
happen to be oats, and we expected the oats to 
ripen in the spring, we could not, of course, plow 
the land again in spring, at least till the oats had 
been taken off. A winter cover crop is always 
to be recommended and will in every case more 
than pay for the extra cost of seeding. When the 
I)ractice of putting in winter cover crops is more 
general, our rivers will not be so red and completely 
charged with our good Georgia soil. 

Bedding in Spring. — Before bedding our land 
for spring planting, it will almost always be neces- 
sary to run over it with harrow and loosen and 
level it. This being done, we are ready for plan- 
ning our rows. If for cotton we will lay off rows 
about four, or four and a half, or five feet apart, 
and begin to prepare our seed bed. If our fertilizers 
have been broadcast over the field, our bedding 
will be very simple. After opening, we shall 
only list and bed and then level the bed. Then 
we are ready for planting. This bedding softens 
up the land and permits the warmth of spring to 
enter and aid in germinating the seed. 

If Fertilizers are Put in Drill Row. — If our 
land is moderately poor, better results will always 
be obtained by putting the fertilizers in the drill 
row. This statement is confirmed by many experi- 
ments. In this case, after we have made the 
furrows, we put the fertilizers and manures in the 
rows, mix thoroughly and incorporate them with 
the soil and then list and bed as before. * Level 
down the rows and we are ready for planting. 



118 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



Many farmers do not mix fertilizers with the soil, 
but drill it with a distributer in the bottom of the 
drill row and cover it. This practice does not 
insure the best results, as the roots of the young 
plants find these concentrates too strong for them, 
and cannot prosper till the fertilizers have become 
dissolved. 

Whatever we plant and however we prepare 
the soil, we should always thoroughly incorporate 
the fertilizers with the soil if we wish to get the 
best results. 

Putting in the 
Seeds. — A rule 
that we should 
always observe is 
to not put seeds in 
soil that is too wet 
or too dry . If we do 
this we shall meet 
with success, other things being equal. If the soil 
is mellow and has the proper amount of moisture, 
the seed will germinate ^^ery quickly, and we will 
have a good stand of plants. Planting is usually 
done with a planter, or drill of some kind, as 
machinery has taken the place of most hand work 
in recent years. Most seed should be planted 
shallow when put out in spring: cotton about one 
inch, corn from one inch to two inches, and most 
vegetable garden seed much shallower than this. 
Many seeds are lost by planting too deep. Others 
are fed to birds, or perish by sunshine, because 
they are not covered, or too lightly covered. Small 
grains, generally, should be covered from three- 




THE SEED DRILL SECURES A PERFECT STAND. 



PLANTING OR SEEDING 119 

fourths of an inch to an inch and a half. They 
may come up outside of this range, but they will 
<lo nothing. The shallow-rooted plants will be 
apt to be killed by winter freezes. The deep- 
rooted will perish, because they can not stool or 
joint. 

Time of Planting. — Farmers do not seem to 
realize just how much it means to plant at the 
right time. TLsually failure results from plant- 
ing at the wrong time. Seeds seem to have a 
sort of sense of timeliness. Many of them will not 
germinate till the proper time comes. Grain 
crops, if sown too early in the fall, are liable to be 
injured by the autumn droughts and insects 
and fungi. They may also grow too much before 
winter begins, and then l)e ruined by the freezes. 
On the other hand, if sown too late, they can- 
not develop sufficient roots to resist the winter 
freezes. To know just when to sow each crop 
is, then, a matter of great importance. Of 
course, this varies very much in different locali- 
ties. Each man must study this question for 
his own surroundings. Much the same is true 
of spring-planted or annual crops. Some of 
these need a long growing period. Others need a 
rapid growth. Hence some should be planted 
early, others late when the soil is thoroughly 
warm. The nature of the plant and the condition 
of the soil are important considerations on this 
point. A happy medium is generally safe. 

Influence of Moon on Time of Planting. — 
Why should not a word be inserted about this 
since 75% of the farmers feel that their crops 



120 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

are made or lost as they are planted on dark or 
light nights? 

Many think the moon's phases are important.. 
They tell you with great confidence that you must 
observe the moon and plant accordingly. This 
advice is contrary to science. The moon's phases 
are never the same two successive days as regards 
any particular locality. There are no quarters of 
the moon. All of the moon is there all the while, 
but what we can see of the half receiving the sun's 
rays changes constantly, and not at stated periods. 
Again, these people do not agree among them- 
selves. Take the trouble to keep a careful record 
and you will soon find that they advise differ- 
ently. But the question is at last one to be 
settled by experience, and not by argument. 
Experience shows that the plants do not observe 
the phases of the moon, but grow according to the 
intelligence and industry of the grower. 

This is a superstition of the Dark Ages handed 
down from sire to son. It is noticed here because 
it has such a strong hold upon the popular mind. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 
THE CULTIVATION OF THE SOIL. 

Cultivation Related to the Crop. — Note should 
be made here that cultivation is meant for the 
good of the crop, but in order for this to be, we 
must pay particular attention to the crop we are 
cultivating. There are a few general laws of the 
soil that must be considered and given attention 
in our methods of cultivation, and beyond this 
the implements used and the time of cultivation 
will be determined by the crop we are cultivating. 
It is safe to say that no more important work 
is ever done on the farm than the proper cultiva- 
tion of the land. 

When to Begin Cultivation. — A farmer should 
make it a rule never to cultivate merely to kill 
weeds, but for the larger purpose of controlling 
moisture in the soil and for improving the crop 
he is cultivating. It would be proper to begin 
cultivation of the soil whenever expedient for 
the purpose of keeping the soil thoroughly mellow 
and loose, especiallj^ after the seeds have been 
planted. This means that we should not wait 
for the young plants to come up. Often we let 
the seed rot in the ground by failing to cultivate 
after spring rains. Closely woven soils will 
remain cold and clammy much longer than culti- 
vated soils, and we should see that our seed beds 
in spring get all the warmth possible. 

The Relation Between Cultivation and Soil 
Temperature. — There should be a soil thermom- 



122 



AGRICULTTJRE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



eter in every school to impress this lesson. Such 
a thermometer would cost only a small sum. Two 
small plots should be selected in some convenient 
place and the one left untouched after breaking 
in the winter. The other should be cultivated as 
early as practicable. The temperature of each 
plot should be recorded daily or every other day, 
to see how they compare. The lesson should be 
impressed that the sun is storing energy in the one, 
which will be needed a little later, while the heat 
is being withheld from the other. 

Cultivate Shallow. — No question is asked 
oftener than this : "How deep shall we cultivate.'^ " 
If the soil has been thoroughly prepared, cultiva- 
tion should never be very deep. It may be deeper, 
however, in the beginning of the season than later. 




TAKE CARE OF THE ROOTS AND THE TOPS WILL TAKE CARE OF THEMSELVES. 



The cultivation of the soil 123 

for the reason that the soil is not full of the plant 
roots early. As the roots begin to grow and spread 
through the soil we should cultivate shallower and 
shallower till we reach a minimum of about one 
and a half inches. In this upper space the young 
roots should never be permitted to grow, as the 
cutting of them will injure the plants. To keep 
the roots from growing in this surface space, we 
shall have to cultivate often. 

How Often to Cultivate. — The best answer to 
this is, as often as the land or the crop will be 
benefited. This will depend largely on the 
weather conditions. It does not pay to wait too 
long after a rainy season to cultivate. In June, 
crops grow very rapidly, and the tender roots 
will soon fill the soil, if it is not cultivated. 
Besides, in order for the plant to enjoy the 
best health, the soil must be loosened up after 
each rain, for letting air down amid the roots 
of the plants. In dry w^eather, moisture is pre- 
served longer by frequent cultivation, and water 
is more rapidly evaporated in wet weather by 
frequent cultivation. So, in either case, the 
more frequent cultivation, the better for the 
crop. 

How Late to Cultivate. — Some farmers have a 
certain part of a certain month that they call 
laying by time, after which they do not cultivate. 
This is not a good idea. The state of the weather, 
as well as the progress of the crop should determine 
when we cease to cultivate. The last cultivation 
very often determines the margin of profit to the 
farmer. We should cultivate, therefore, as late 



,124 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

as we can conveniently go up and down the rows 
till the fruit of whatever crop we are planting 
begins to set. We should of course bear in mind 
that the later we cultivate, the shallower we must 
cultivate. This lesson cannot be too well learned . 

The TuU Theory.— The Tull theory, "Culture 
is Manure", has lieen well-nigh proven to be true. 
Under its magic touch, soils which have been 
thought ver}^ poor have proven very rich. If 
culture does not make manure, it certainly 
makes the manure do much greater good. By 
culture we mean stirring the soil so as to keep 
the top fresh, prevent all baking and destroy 
all objectionable growth. These hurtful weeds 
are so many and grow with such vigor that the 
farmer must be ever on the lookout for them. 
They slumber not, neither do they rest. By 
night and by day they spring up and choke 
the crop. There are not manj^ crops that can be 
planted and left alone. They require constant 
help. As soon as the seed sprouts and begins to 
grow, noxious weeds do the same. 

The warm sunshine and spring winds tend to 
form a crust on the surface, thus preventing free 
circulation of air, water and sunshine, all of which 
are needed to prepare food for the tender roots. 
So this crust breeds weeds and hurts plant roots. 
It must not be allowed to remain undisturbed. 
Rapid work is now demanded. The plowman's 
merry whistle should trill upon the morning air 
before the dewdrops have been kissed away by 
the sunshine. His mellow song of sweet content 
should wake the echoes after the roseate sunset 



THE CULTIVATION OF THE SOIL 125 

hues have passed away. Early and late he must 
speed the plow upon its mission of help and life. 
Care should be taken to injure the roots of the 
growing plants as little as possible. Hence light- 
running plows and harrows should be used. 
"Often and shallow" is the motto. 

Cultivation for Forming Mulch. — We should 
get some outside information on the formation 
and importance of mulch. The kind of mulch 
we are speaking of here is a dust blanket. The 
surface of the soil in this condition acts in 
many ways for the good of the growing plants. 
It absorbs the sun's heat, but feeds it slowly to 
the root bed. It absorbs the dews, but prevents 
rapid evaporation. It assists in bringing up the 

earth water by cap- 
illary action, and at 
the same time prevents 
it from escaping into 
the air. In these and 
other ways it helps for- 
ward the rapid growth 
of the crops. The finer it is, the better it can 
do all of this work. Hence furrow after furrow 
is the price of success. Just before the corn comes 
up, run a light harrow or weeder over it. This 
will help to get a good stand, and destroy the first 
crop of weeds. 

When the corn is a few inches high, repeat the 
harrowing. Follow with a hoe, thinning to a 
stand and leaving every stalk free to grow. About 
a week or ten days after, go over it with a culti- 
vator or sweep. Continue this until the corn is 




CULTIVATOR OR WEEDER. 



126 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

in silk. For cotton the culture is much the same. 
If a crust forms after planting, go over it with a 
light harrow. This helps to let the young cotton 
through, and at the same time kills the first crop, 
or coat, as we call it, of crab grass. This is the 
great enemy of the cotton plant. Grass seed can 
not come up in freshly stirred soil. There must 
always be a small or thin crust on the ground be- 
fore crab grass will come up. Hence, we must 
stir the soil often and thoroughly to keep down 
the grass. When the cotton has been up long 
enough for the second set of leaves to appear, 
harrow thoroughly or plow close up with scrape, 
and chop out to a stand as rapidly as possible. 
The quicker this is done the surer the crop. Very 
many object to this statement, but a long experi- 
ence is on this side. 

Relation of Cultivation to Disease. — This para- 
graph may well be introduced by showing the 
relation between a sore finger and a well finger. 
Which one will be the more likely to be inoculated 
with disease germs that float in the air.^ A young 
plant, especially a cotton plant, will resist the 
diseases common to this plant much better if 
not wounded than it will if it is scarred by a hoe 
or plow. In cultivating young plants, therefore, 
we must be careful never to woimd or scar them 
and thus leave an opening for disease to enter. 



THE CULTIVATION OF THE SOIL 



127 




CHAPTER XXV. 
THE HARVEST TIME. 

In view of the many millions of dollars lost 
annually by farmers who fail to care for their 
crops after they have already made and culti- 
vated them, it will be well for us to make a close 
study of the harvest time, and see if this great 
loss cannot be saved. 

The Small Grain. — There is more pleasure 
in the ingathering than in the outlaying. The 
harvest feast and the harvest song are as old as 
history. The sweltering days give rich reward. 
The small grains will come first. When the golden 
tint is well set and the firm grain is in the head, 
the mower, reaper, sickle and scythe are heard 
in the land. If the grain is for hay-feeding, 
cut just as the dough stage is reached. If for 
grinding, then it should be fairly ripe. If for 
seed, then thorough ripening is best. Grains, 
wheat particularly, make whiter flour if reaped be- 
fore too heavy a coat of bran is formed. Local 
surroundings will decide whether the reaping shall 
be done by hand or machine. 

After the grain has been placed in dozens and 
well capped, it should stand until thoroughly dry, 
if the weather will permit. If you are dependent 
upon the traveling thresher, it is well to have 
plenty of barn room. In such cases it is always 
safe to house as soon as dry enough. Storms or 
continued rainy spells can soon ruin or greatly 
damage the crop. Here "an ounce of prevention 



THE HARVEST TIME 129 

is worth a pound of cure." Some find it cheaper 
to provide weather-caps of duck cloth, each corner 
weighted, and put these over the shocks or hand 
stacks. They save the hauHng and attendant 
waste and handhng. 

The Problem of Caring for the Straw.— The 
straw" is too vahiable to throw away, and will 
help the land wonderfidly, if it is merely scattered 
over and plowed under. If it is to be fed to the 
cattle, a straw rack will be a great saving. 
Build a long shelter and board it cheaply. Have 
it about thirty feet inside and about nine feet 
high. From the middle have peeled pine poles, 
placed about four inches apart, and ending about 
three feet above the ground on either side. Have 
an open dri^^eway, about eight or ten feet, run- 
ning entire length. On either side of front, build 
a chaff room. Have a floor six feet wide running 
along over the wagon way. 

Place the machine so that the straw will be 
discharged by the stacker on the six-foot floor. 
A man with a fork can easily distribute it along 
on the poles on either side. When the threshing 
is over the straw and chaff will be ready for feed- 
ing, without more handling. Light gates or doors 
can be used, if desired. The cattle can feed them- 
selves at night and be shielded from all bad 
weather. The manure will be dry and ready for 
the field. Any kind of hay may be thrown into 
this rack. It is a great labor-saver as well as food- 
saver. The grain should be at once placed in 
rat-proof, weevil-free bins. A little care will so 
build them that rats can not get in. If the grain 



130 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 




THE HARVEST TIME 131 

is dry and kept so, weevils are not apt to aj)pear. 
Heat hatches them and moisture creates the heat. 
A Httle air-slacked lime sprinkled over the grain 
will absorb the moisture, and help to prevent 
weevils. 

Harvesting the Corn Crop. — There have been 
many ways recommended for gathering corn. 
The old way of pulling fodder in July and August 
and the corn in the autumn we need not mention. 
Fodder-pulling has long been a regular part of 
farm work, but we have learned in recent years 
that this is not the best way to care for corn, and 
we have also learned that hay is cheaper and 
better than fodder. We have also learned that the 
stalk is as good for hay as the blade. The increased 
value of the hay resulting from using stalks as well 
as blades is leading farmers to (juit pulling fodder 
and corn in the old way. We note when the grain 
is beginning to harden and the fodder is fully 
ripe, but not all burned, and then cut the stalks 
and stack them in fields four weeks or more. 
When the corn is dry we haul it in, and with a 
shredding machine shuck off the ear, and grind 
the stalk, shuck and fodder into hay as good as 
the fodder alone, and three times as much of it. 
Animals eagerly devour this hay, and do well 
when fed on it. 

We have thus saved a great deal of labor and 
expense, and gathered a much larger crop of food 
from the same area. This plan is new in the South, 
and will be somewhat slow of adoption. The cost 
of shredders, and engines to run them, is the chief 
difficulty. This can be met in two ways. Either 



132 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

club together and buy one outfit for several farms, 
or let the man who runs the traveling threshers 
run a traveling shredder. The corn stalks are 
worth as much as the corn. Why, then, should 
we lose them, as we have been doing? Saving is 
as important as making, and often much easier 
and more profitable. Bale the hay and care for 
the corn, and you will have a larger clear gain. 
But if you prefer the old way, the fodder should 
not be pulled too early, as it is the lungs of the 
corn plant, and stops all work in the stalk when 
taken off. Pulhng fodder always makes the grain 
lighter. Put the corn away in the shuck, a little 
damp, mix a little lime to keep rats out, and use 
carbon bisulphide for weevils. The annual loss 
from rats is enormous, running up into millions 
of dollars. Build good cribs, rat-proof, and then 
use rough on rats. 

The Cotton Crop. — For a long time we have 
been looking for a cotton picker with which the 
increasingly large cotton crop could be gathered 
without so much delay, but up to this time, as 
has been stated in another chapter, this picker 
has not been perfected. It is to be hoped that 
some genius will yet work out the problem. Cot- 
ton that stands in the field rapidly deteriorates 
in value, and should be picked as early as possible 
after it opens. However, we should say in passing 
that picking cracked bolls is not wise. If the 
weather is good, this growth will be finished in 
three or four days. There is no gain in leaving 
the open cotton after this. All chances considered, 
it is well to keep up with the picking. The hand- 



THE HARVEST TIME 133 

ling after picking is quite important. The com- 
mon custom of putting the cotton in the wagon 
as it is picked, and unloading it at the gin, is ob- 
jectionable from several points. The cracked 
bolls being still damp, the lint will be cut off in 
lumps, and the sample will be either gin-cut 
or nappy, or both. Such bales never bring the 




MODEL FIELD OF COTTON FOR ORDINARY UPLAND. 

highest market price. Add to this the trash due 
to careless picking, and you have one cause for 
the loss of millions of dollars every crop. 

The Baling of Cotton. — As cotton is our greatest 
money crop in the South, we should pay special 
attention to see that we lose none of its money 



134 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

value after it has been grown and picked. Care- 
less packing causes a great loss. There is no 
more unsightly thing thrown upon the market 
than the average bale of American cotton. 
The known uncertainty as to uniformity of 
quality necessitates repeated samplings. Each of 
these leaves an ugly scar, and causes a loss of 
weight. The size and weight make the bale awk- 
ward to handle, and the rough, heavy covering 
not only catches all sorts of filth, but is worth- 
less at the factory, and is deducted in pricing. 
All these causes result in a loss of about two dol- 
lars and seventy-five cents per bale. With a ten 
million bale crop this would mean twenty-seven 
and a half millions of dollars. This vast sum could 
be saved by changing the method of baling. It is 
hard to change a well established custom, but 
when about one-tenth of the value of each crop 
is lost, it is worth while to do something. The 
round-bale system claims to do this, and is cer- 
tainly worthy of the careful study of every cotton 
planter. Another fearful loss is caused by the old 
method. Having no suitable cotton house, and 
carrying the cotton directly from the field to the 
gin, encourages the idea of carrying the bales from 
the gin to the market. In this way the cotton crop 
is annually sold on a forced market, while the 
staple is known to be green and damp, and con- 
stantly losing in weight. The buyer must defend 
himself against all of these detriments, and hence 
the bulk of the crop always passes from the pro- 
ducer's hands much below its real value. 

Sweet Potatoes. — The only general suggestion 



THE HARVEST TIME 



135 




136 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

that can be made about sweet potatoes is to thor- 
oughly dry them before putting them away. If 
this is not done, they will spoil. Some planters 
dry them out thoroughly before storing and then 
sprinkle a little water over them • when stored. 
We should be careful not to dig them before 
they are ripe, nor can it do any good to leave them 
in the field after maturity. It is a mistake to 
be governed entirely by regard to frost in the 
matter. By cutting a potato and letting it 
dry, and noting the color of the dried milk, 
we can tell whether it is ripe. If the milk dries 
white, they are ripe, otherwise, they are not. 
When this is the case they should be dug, regard- 
less of frost. Many methods have been tried for 
preserving them after gathering. We shall not 
select among them. Remember the nature of the 
potato and act accordingly. They are full of wa- 
ter. Much of this must escape or they will not 
keep. Never cover them closely until most of this 
water has been dried out. Soon after heaping them 
they will get very warm in the effort to throw off 
this excess of water. When this sweating is over, 
you may cover them with any convenient cover- 
ing, as earth or cottonseed, or put them in a warm 
cellar. They are very easily injured by cold and 
must be kept warm. First dry, then warm, and 
they are safe. A little vegetable heat will be de- 
veloped every warm spell, so a small opening should 
always be provided for its escape. In extreme cold 
spells this should be closed. 

Irish Potatoes. — Irish potatoes form another 
valuable crop.- They differ in their nature from 



THE HARVEST TIME 137 

sweet potatoes. They are not easily affected by 
cold, but are strongly inclined to sprout if warm. 
The two essential points in keeping them are: 
First, keep them in the dark; second, keep 
them cool. Light causes them to sprout, and 
in this condition cold ruins them. Prevent 
this, and they are very hard to freeze. All 
bruised tubers should be removed a few weeks 
after digging. They may be kept in boxes or 
barrels, in the barn, covered with hay, or in the 
hills like sweet potatoes, but with lighter cover- 




iSi2 IRISH COBBLER 3 5i 4 EARLY ROSt 



WHICH POTATO SHOULD WE CHOOSE THE SMOOTH, EVEN 

KIND, OR THE KNOTTY ONES? 

ing. A moderately cool, dark room may be 
cheaply built for them. 

Silage. — It will not be necessary to go into detail 
about many other crops. We may suggest that 
no system of farming in the South will be com- 
plete when the Mexican cotton boll weevil covers 
all the cotton States, that has not a good strong 
live stock feature, and this will necessitate the 
growing of silage. A crop composed of half corn 
and half sorghum makes a good silage crop. 



138 



AGRirULTT RE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 




\ 



THE SILO A GOOD FACTORY. 



In order to store silage, a good silo has to be 
constructed. The accompanying picture shows 
a silo that ought to cost only about $100. Where 
a farmer does his own work under wise guidance, 
the cost could be reduced. The importance of 
silos will be discussed in the chapter on Live 
Stock. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 
CROP ROTATION. 

There is no section of the Ignited States in 
which rotation is so much needed and in which 
so much good will result as the Cotton States. 
The practice of a one-crop system has about 
exhausted the soil on millions of acres of cotton 
lands, and this may be partly redeemed by a 
good system of crop rotation. It will cost more 
to do this now than it would have cost several 
years ago, and if not undertaken immediately 
will cost much more even in the future than it 
will at the present time. A crop rotation must 
be inaugurated in self defense on every Southern 
farm where it has not already become part of the 
system. 

What is a Crop Rotation? — This should mean 
more than merely one crop following another. 
For a little study of the subject we should consult 
Bailey's Cyclopaedia of Agriculture and several 
other manuals on Agricidture. A firmly fixed 
system of farming by which the most can be 
gotten from the soil and at the same time the 
most left in it, would not be a poor definition. 
Wherever a one crop system has prevailed in this 
country or any other, the land has gradually 
become poorer and poorer, whether the crop was 
cotton, corn, tobacco, hemp, wheat or any other 
crop. A rotation system is therefore a system 
of Agriculture where there is a logical succession 
of crops for making money and building up land 
at the same time. 



140 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

Advantages of a Rotation. — It has already 
been stated that a one crop system is a great 
barrier to progress in that it depletes the land. 
A rotation system has this advantage over the 
one crop system, that it helps to maintain the 
fertility of the land. With good land farmers 
will always prosper, but with poor land they 
cannot. Therefore, a rotation system brings 
prosperity to a section soon after it has been 
introduced. It helps to control disease and insect 
pests. It helps to control the growth and multi- 
plication of weeds, and therefore saves some of 
the expense of cultivation. This has been clearly 
shown in farm practices. 

How to Plan a Rotation. — In planning a 
rotation, consideration should be given to the 
three following items: the money crop, the crop 
that helps maintain fertility and build up soil, 
and the crop that helps to keep the land clean. 
It may be possible to combine two of these in 
one; for instance, the money crop may help to 
keep the land clean. This would be true in a 
section of the country where hay is the money 
crop ; for hay usually helps to keep the land clean. 
In Georgia at the present time, attention should 
be directed especially to the soil building part of 
a rotation. This means that more legumes 
should be grown and turned under when possible. 
The most profitable and economic soil builders 
for the South are leguminous plants, such as field 
peas, soja beans, velvet beans, and the clovers 
and vetches. The hairy vetch is one of the best 
soil builders and will keep the land covered during 




THESE ARE WINTER GROWING CROPS THAT PAY THE FARMER AND HELP THE LAND. 



142 AGRICULTITRE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

winter and can be cut early enough in spring to 
be followed with corn or silage. 

A Good Rotation for Southern Farmers. — 

It will hardly be necessary to suggest that cotton 
will for a long time to come play a big part in any 
rotation system on Southern farms. This being 
true, we should so plan our rotation. Cotton is a 
long growing crop, and will require almost the 
entire year to grow and harvest it. Therefore, 
plans should not be made to follow cotton with 
winter grain crops, unless we wish to sow the 
grains between the cotton rows before the cotton 
is all picked. Winter grains can much more 
easily come after corn, as all the corn may be 
harvested in time to sow the winter grains early 
enough in the fall. 

The order of the rotation for convenience 
should be as follows: 

1st year, cotton, 

2nd year, corn, 

3rd year, small grain followed by some legume 
in the spring. 

With this order of the rotation, it would be 
expected that the small grain crop should be 
planted in the autumn after the corn had been 
harvested. 

A Two Year Rotation. — If a farmer has suffi- 
cient pasture for a permanent supply of forage 
and grass, and wishes to alternate his corn with 
his cotton crop, this may be done with greater 
profit in the long run than to have a certain part 
of the plantation in cotton all the time and another 
in corn year after year. In so doing, he may be 



CROP ROTATION 



143 




144 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

able to cover the land after corn with some winter 
crop such as clover or rye, for foraging purposes. 
This would save the land from leaching during 
winter rains, and help to keep a fair amount of 
vegetable matter in the soil. 

If he is primaril}^ a livestock farmer, he may 
alternate corn with clover, or peas and oats, and 
thereby build up his land to a high state of culti- 
vation. By using the barnyard manures pro- 
duced by the livestock, he will be able to enrich 
his land very rapidly. 

Conditions Affecting a Rotation. — In planning 
the rotation, attention should be directed to the 
following factors if we wish to succeed: the 
number of hands engaged in the work of the 
farm, the crops we are to plant, the teams at our 
disposal, the implements, and the money allow- 
ance to run the farm. We should also pay special 
attention to the proper division of the farm. 
If it has poor and rich spots, it may be divided 
equally according to the yielding capacity of the 
various fields or parts. Very often conditions 
may arise whereby we could not plant a ninety 
acre field into three equal parts of thirty acres 
each. This may not give us enough corn for our 
livestock nor an opportunity for growing silage. 
It is best always in planning a rotation to allow 
for such possibilities^ and not make an iron clad 
rule. These considerations should not induce us, 
however, to set aside the real object of the rotation: 
viz., to permit one crop to follow another in 
regular succession in order that the best results 
may be secured. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 
LIMIT OF PRODUCTION OF FARM CROPS. 

Some Suggestions. — Students will provide 
themselves with special note books for recording 
information of the high yields of farm crops in 
the South and throughout the United States. 
They maj^ be recjuired to make a special table of 
the yields of all the winners of prizes among the 
club boys and girls of the State in which the scb.ool 
is located. This should be done. If we need 
references we must write to the State Agent 
in charge of Boys' and Girls' Clubs, who keeps on 
file all the information we need. 

We must also get in this note book all the 
highest yields we can find in the newspapers, 
and that our parents can tell us about. In every 
possible case, be sure to get the names of growers, 
and then write to these if they are living. 

We must also get the methods pursued in the 
making of large crops. If we can get this and 
apply it, there is no reason why any of us should 
make low yielding crops. 

Sometimes the high cost of high yields makes 
it impracticable, and this is especially the one 
thing that we must learn. Learn the cost of 
production. When the grower has not made any 
estimate, be sure to find out the special prepara- 
tion, the extra amount of fertilizer, and the extra 
number of times the crop was cultivated, and 
then estimate the total cost. 

How to Make Large Yields. — If you are to 



146 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

undertake to make large yields of any field crop, 
or in fact any crop, study the conservative 
and sensible methods. A study of Agriculture 
in the schools is one of the means of getting needed 
information to the farmers who are to make a 
living out of the soil, and certainly the subject 
should bear a direct relation to a new era of pros- 
perity on the farm. If thr^e acres could be made 
to produce as much corn as five acres produce at 
present, and at a much smaller cost, we would 
not only be saving land, but would be learning 
the ^-alue of our land — both that which we culti- 
vate and that which we do not cultivate. The 
class will now show much land we would have for 
pasturage if the State in which the school is 
located would make as a whole as much corn on 
three acres as it now makes on five acres. Many 
problems of this nature can be worked out by all 
of us. 

High Corn Yields. — lentil recently, there have 
been very few efforts to make record yields of 
this great food crop, and yet since the new move- 
ment of Boys' Corn Clubs has taken such a hold 
upon the people of the whole country, our bo3^s 
are beginning to show us how^ to really make 
corn. Many of them Ikia^c made a high record of 
over tAvo hundred bushels on a single acre at the 
low cost of less than twenty cents per bushel. 
If this is possible on one acre, it must be possible 
on more than one acre, and farmers should learn 
to grow their entire crop of corn on a very few 
acres. 

Our habit of growing corn as well as other 



LIMIT OF PRODUCTION OF FARM CROPS 



147 




148 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

crops in the old way has kept us from making 
the best use of our lands. It has helped us to 
destroj^ much of our lands and we must turn the 
tide in the direction of prosperity, by increasing 
the yields of our lands. 

Cotton. — As far back as 1825, we find farmers 
making high yields with cotton. In 1857 we find 
a farmer at Athens, Georgia, making two bales to 
the acre, and it is no uncommon thing for farmers 
to make as much as two and a half bales at the 
present time. To do so demands careful prepa- 
ration, fertilization, and cultivation. All of these 
things cannot make two bales, though, without 
attention to the kind of seed we plant. A cotton 
farmer in Alabama wrote Dr. S. A. Knapp the 
following letter which will perhaps explain why 
we do not have more farmers who make high 
yields: "I was born in a cotton field and have 
worked cotton on my farm for more than forty 
years. I thought no one could tell me anything 
about raising cotton. I had usually raised one- 
half bale on my thin soil and I thought that was 
all the cotton there was in it in one season. The 
demonstration agent came along and wanted me 
to try his plan on two acres. Not to be contrary, 
I agreed, but I did not believe what he told me. 
However, I tried my best to do as he said, and at 
the end of the year I had a bale and a half to the 
acre on the two acres worked his way and a little 
over a third of a bale on the land worked my way. 
This year I have a bale and a half to the acre on 
my whole farm. If you do not believe it, I invite 



LIMIT OF PRODUCTIOxN OF FARM CROPS 



149 




A PRIZE SHEAF OF OATS PLACE EXHIBITS LIKE THIS IN THE SCHOOL HOUSE. 



150 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

you to come down and see. Yes, sir; as a good 
cotton farmer, I am just one year old." 

Cotton is an eas}^ crop to make, but we must 
carefully plan a big crop if we wish to make it. 
We must have faith in the best methods, and 
then practice them. Yes, indeed, we must 
actually practice them })efore we can have results. 

Tomatoes, Potatoes and Other Crops. — Most 
of us raise a large crop per acre of these truck 
crops because we prepare our land and fertilize 
it well. Most of the spare fertilizers on the plan- 
tation go into the small patches and truck crops. 
If these were a little larger, and we raised these 
crops for sale, they would pay far better in pro- 
portion to the acreage than the staple crops. 

Small Grain Crops. — It is no uncommon thing 
for farmers to make forty, fift}^ or even a hundred 
bushels of oats to the acre, and this being true, 
certainly no farmer has any excuse for raising no 
more than the small present average in Georgia 
or other of the Southern States. Get your last 
census report and calculate the average jaeld of 
these as well as the other farm crops per acre in 
your State, and in your own county if it is given. 
The census report may be obtained from Wash- 
ington, D. C, through your Congressmen, and 
this experience will be of great benefit to teacher 
and pupils. 

Let each of us l)ring to the class at the next 
meeting, as near as we can find out, the yield per 
acre of these crops made on our own farms. If 
we cannot get at the exact figures, get as near 
them as we can. Do not permit ourselves to 



LIMIT OF PRODUCTION OF FARM CROPS 



151 




152 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

exaggerate. The yield is usually less than we had 
thought. 

Some Suggestions Given by Dr. Knapp for 
Making High Yields. — The following should be 
learned and put in practice by every student of 
Agriculture in school or college, and until they 
are, no very high jaelds are going to be made. 
The rules given below are given by Dr. Knapp 
in his bulletin on Co-Operative Demonstration 
Work. 

(1) — Prepare a deep and thoroughly pulverized 
seed bed, well drained; break in the fall 
to the depth of 8, 10, or even 12 inches, 
according to the soil, with implements 
that will not bring too much of the sub- 
soil to the surface. The foregoing depths 
should be reached gradually. 

(2) — Use seed of the very best variety, intelli- 
gently selected and carefully stored. 

(3) — In cultivated crops give the rows and the 
plants in the rows a space suited to the 
plant, the soil, and the climate. 

(4) — Use intensive tillage during the growing 
period of the crops. 

(5) — Secure a high content of humus in the soil 
by the use of legumes, barnyard manure, 
farm refuse, and commercial fertilizers. 

(6) — Carry out a systematic crop rotation with 
a winter cover crop. 

(7) — Accomplish more work in a day by using 
more horsepower and better implements. 

(8) — Increase the farm stock to the extent of 



LIMIT OF PRODUCTION OF FARM CROPS 153 

utilizing all waste products and idle 

lands of the farm. 
(9) — Produce all the food required for the men 

and animals on the farm. 
(10) — Keep an account of each farm product, in 

order to know from which the gain or 

loss arises. 
Attention to such suggestions as those above 
must result in a greater and more prosperous 
Southern Agriculture, and let us hope that none of 
us are unwise enough to fail to put them in prac- 
tice. 

THE CORN SONG. 

Heap high the farmer's wintry hoard! 

Heap high the golden corn! 
No richer gift has Autumn poured 

From out her lavish horn! 

Let other lands, exulting, glean 

The apple from the pine. 
The orange from its glossy green. 

The cluster from the vine. 

We better love the hardy gift 

Our rugged vales bestow. 
To cheer us when the storm shall drift 

Our harvest-fields with snow. 

Through vales of grass and meads of flowers 

Our ploughs their furrows made. 
While on the hills the sun and showers 

Of changeful April played. 

We dropped the seed o'er hill and plain 

Beneath the sun of May, 
And frightened from our sprouting grain 

The robber crows away. 

All through the long, bright days of June 

Its leaves grew green and fair. 
And waved in hot mid-summer's noon 

Its soft and yellow hair. 



164 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



And now, with autumn's moonlit eves, 
Its harvest-time has come, 

We pluck away the frosted leaves, 
And bear the treasure home. 

There, when the snows about us drift. 
And winter winds are cold, 

Fair hands the broken grain shall sift, 
And knead its meal of gold. 

Let vapid idlers loll in silk 
Around their costly board; 

Give us the bowl of samp and milk. 
By homespun beauty poured! 

Where'er the wide old kitchen hearth 
Sends up its smoky curls. 

Who will not thank the kindly earth. 
And bless our farmer girls! 

Then shame on all the proud and vain. 
Whose folly laughs to scorn 

The blessing of our hartly grain. 
Our wealth of golden corn! 



Whittier. 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 




A FANNING MILL. IT CLEANS AND 
GRADES THE SEEDS. 



PRACTICAL LESSONS IN PLANT 
BREEDING. "^ 

Selection. — The most important thing to learn 
about plant breeding is that 
selection is far safer and 
surer of reward than cross- 
})reeding for most of us. 
To do cross-breeding suc- 
cessfully takes many years' 
experience as a breeder 
and nuich expert knowledge 
of the laws of heredity. 
We should therefore restrict most of the prac- 
tical work in l^reeding to selection. 

The Plant-to-Row Method. — After we have 
made several selections of plants from the general 
crop in which we are doing breeding work, we 
should not put the fruits of these plants in one heap, 
but should keep and plant them in separate rows, 
in order to see of the entire number which prove 
to be as good as they look. Sometimes a plant 
will deceive us, by looking far better than it really 
is, and we cannot see its defects till we have planted 
the seeds. In this method, each plant should 
be numbered and planted in a row separate from 
all the other selections, so that we can make what 
we may term its "performance record". The 
selection that makes the best performance record 
will be the beginning of our new crop as soon as 
we can grow enough seed from it to plant our 
crop. 



156 AGRirULTlTRE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

How to Find tlie First Plants. — Go into any 
field you will, and you can find good plants, 
medium plants, and poor plants. Good plants 
are those that are above the average in every 
way. Most of us can recognize them when we 
see them, and a little practice will make experts 
of us. No field is so poor that these good plants 
may not be found in it. No variety of cultivated 
plants is so poor that it does not have many good 
plants in it. In order to begin the work of selec- 
tion, we should go into the field determined to 
find at least fifty good plants for a beginning of 
our breeding work. Teachers will find it very 
interesting to take classes to the field for a study 
of this individuality in plants. It will surprise 
us to find it so conspicuous. 

Plot Arrangement. — This part of the work 
has been a hindrance to many of us who would 
otherwise have undertaken some simple work in 
breeding. The plot arrangement should be as 
simple as any other part of the work. The seed 
from one plant should be put in a separate row. 
The selection of fifty plants would necessitate the 
provision of as many separate short rows in which 
to grow the seed. If it proves inconvenient to 
grow the selected seed in a separate field or plot, 
we shall find it easy to arrange to put them in a 
corner of the regular field planted in a like crop. 
If we have selected corn, plant our selected ears 
in a corner or side of the regular field. If we have 
selected cotton, put our selections in one corner 
of the regular cotton field. One thing we must 
do, viz., make the selections, and begin the breed- 



PRACTICAL LESSONS IN PLANT BREEDING 



157 



ing work. The plot arrangement will take care of 
itself. 

In the Case of Cotton. — It has been complained 
that it is too hard to get small qnantities of cotton 
ginned. This claim is a just one, but we should 
not be deprived of the pleasure of improving our 

cotton, o n account 
of this small diffi- 
culty. If several 
neighbors find it 
impractical to secure 
a small hand gin, 
plant the whole lock 
in a hill, without 
pulling the lint off. 
This is being done 
by thousands of 
farmers, and it 
works almost as well 
this way as when 
the cotton is ginned. 
If the plant that is 
selected is a very 
fine one, break the 
locks in two parts 
and make two hills 
out of each in order 

UNIFORM PLANTS IN "PLANT-TO-ROW" TEST. tO gCt Si largCr arCa 

planted from the seed from one plant. 

Variation. — The basis of selection is the peculiar 
inherent character in all organic beings called 
variation. If there were no variation there would 
be no possible way of making selections. And 




158 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

if such selections were made, one could not be 
told from another. No two things in all nature 
are exactly alike. When we set up a standard of 
excellence, we examine many individuals and 
select those that come nearest our standard of 
excellence. The offsprings of our selections will 
also be variable^ but the variation though as great 
as any plant in the field, will in most cases vary 
around the good points found in the selected 
mother plant, and this is what makes plant- 
breeding by selection possible. 

Selection and Disease. — In many instances 
selection against disease in farm crops has proved 
successful, and we are therefore made to believe 
that some plants in every variety and family 
resist diseases better than others. When any 
well-known disease develops in our fields, we 
should make every opportunity to test the non- 
diseased plants for resistance. In many cases we 
shall be pleased to find that certain of our selec- 
tions shall prove successful. 

Class Work in Breeding. — Each member of 
the class should be required to select at least one 
ear of corn, of a given variety, and let the class 
as a whole make a test of the ear-to-the-row 
method, and then appoint a committee from the 
class to do the testing and weighing in the autumn 
for the class. These figures should be brought 
in for study the following term of school. The 
pupils should weigh the ears, count the number of 
rows of grain, get the length of ear and the dis- 
tance around, the size of the cob, and put all this 
down in a set of notes. Then a germination test 



PRACTICAL LESSONS IN PLANT BREEDING 159 




160 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

should be made for each ear by the pupil who 
selected that particular ear. This will be best 
done by making a shallow box, say three inches 
deep, and fifteen inches wide and six feet long. 
Cracks should be left in bottom for ventilation. 
This box should be filled almost full of clean sand, 
and ten grains from each selected ear planted in a 
row the short way across the box, and the sand 
kept moist till the corn is all up. The results will 
show the per cent of the grains on the several 
ears that will germinate. Some grains will not 
germinate at all, and in some, five, six, seven or 
eight grains will germinate. If any germinate 
only five or six grains, it would be w^ell to throw 
this ear out from the selection, and let the pupil 
who selected it select another ear and test again. 

Another short exercise that will prove inter- 
esting to classes is to have the pupils bring in 
several plants from some field and put them in a 
line in some convenient place in the school room, 
and study variation for a day or two. This will 
prove to all that some plants are better than others, 
the keynote to success in breeding. 

Breeding No New Thing. — We should not be 
persuaded that we are undertaking something 
new when we undertake breeding work with 
animals and plants. As far back as the ancients, 
planters had their regular methods of seed selec- 
tion, and some of their methods were superior 
to ours of today. Virgil wrote in his Georgics, 
which all of us should read some day : 



PRACTICAL LESSONS IN PLANT BREEDING 161 

"Still will the seeds, tho chosen with toilsome pains. 
Degenerate, if man's industrious hand 
Cull not each year the largest and the best. 
'Tis thus by destiny, all things decay 
And retrograde, "with motion unperceived." 

This is a principle as fresh to the present 
plant-breeder as it was to those in Virgil's day, 
and as important as any law that has been uttered 
since his day. There have been few better horse 
breeders than the Arabians who developed long 
before the Christian era some of the best race 
horses the world has ever known. 

Cross-Breeding. — We shall have before the 
class some flowers of the cotton, or of any con- 
venient garden or ornamental plant, and study 
the sex organs for an understanding of crossing. 
Look carefully for the stamens and the pistils of 
the flowers. The stamens are the male organs 
and the pistils the female organs of the plant. 
To cross flowers, we must take all the stamens off 
the flower the day before it is ready to open, 
and cover with some kind of light paper or cloth 
bag, to keep insects from getting to it before we 
are ready to apply pollen to the stigma. When 
we are ready to introduce the pollen, take the bag 
off, and apply pollen to the sticky end of the 
stigma, rubbing lightly but thoroughly so the 
grains will stick to every part of the stigma, and 
then put the bag back over the flower and leave 
for at least twenty-four hours. If the fruit comes 
to maturity, you have succeeded in the cross. 
If it does not come to maturity, you have failed. 
The flower should be marked with some small 



162 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON S( HOOLS 

tag in order that it may be recognized and col- 
lected separately from the other part of the crop. 
Crossing is not recommended for popular 
work except to show classes just how difficult the 
process is, and why the average farmer should 
not attempt it at all. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 
TRUCK FARMING. 

Truck farming should engage our attention 
as a necessary part of ever^^ farm. Alost of us 
are in the habit of thinking of trucking as a sup- 
plementary income to the general farm. It is 
best in this capacity or as a special line of farming, 
but most people will not undertake trucking as a 
specialty. As a smaller business, we would urge 
every one who has a garden or a place for a garden 




A LOAD OF TRUCK. 



at all, to keep something growing in it all the year 
both to eat and to sell. Tliis method of growing 
spring vegetables and then letting the garden 
spot grow up in weeds is inexcusable. Vege- 
tables are most wholesome and far better than 
other kinds of food, and should be grown and eaten 
to a greater extent than at present. How delight- 
ful is a fresh lettuce head in mid-winter both for 



164 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

decoration and for eating, and yet we could have 
this dehcacy every day in the year if we planned 
for it. Lettuce will grow in the open in the South- 
ern States all winter. Many other vegetables 
quite as nice for the winter table will grow in the 
open all winter in the South. 

Market-gardening. — Trucking is sometimes 
called market-gardening. In fact, market-gar- 
dening may be said to l)e trucking on a smaller 
scale. In market-gardening the intense manur- 
ing and high culture of the kitchen garden is 
applied to larger areas. The produce is gen- 
erally sold in a fresh condition in a nearby town 
or city. Rapid transj)()rtatic)n and refrigerat- 
ing methods have made it profitable to send 
these fresh vegetables to quite distant markets. 
The great cities of the North are thus supplied 
with the luxuries of the South early in the season. 
This has given quite a stimulus to truck-farming 
in the South. 

Advantages of Location. — Tlie tendency of 
salt air to keep off frosts, gives great advantage 
to the sea-coast regions. A few days' differ- 
ence in reaching the market often makes a 
great difference in the price. Every method 
of hastening maturity is resorted to among 
truckers. Forcing beds, glass houses, cold frames, 
heat-producing manures, and early varieties of 
vegetables all have a bearing upon the success 
of the gardener. Nearness to market, rapidity 
of transportation, cost of carriage, and facilities 
for keeping vegetables from withering and decay- 



TRUCK FARMING 



165 




MAKE THE GARDEN A LEADING FACTOR IN FARMING. , 



.J 



166 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

ing, are other important points. The successful 
man must study all of these. 

Use of Large Quantities of Fertilizers.^ — 

Market gardeners find it pays them to use very 
large quantities of manure and fertilizers. They 
generally depend largely upon the cities near 
them for manure. They sometimes find it pays 
to haul this long distances, if the roads are good. 
From the larger cities, this manure is shipped out 
in car or train loads. This is because land near 
these is not sufficient and gets to be too dear. 
The cost of carrying manure is less than the cost 
of the land. Very highly manured land is warmer 
and hastens the maturity of vegetables. 

Quality Better than Quantity. — Another 
point of great importance to the truck-farmer 
is the quality of his vegetables. Sorr^^ vege- 
tables are hard to sell, and do not bring pay- 
ing prices. Good vegetables are always in demand 
and generally at paying prices. The market is 
never oversupplied with strictly choice articles. 
Please the eye and the palate, and you will find 
ready sale and good profit. To treat of this sub- 
ject in detail would fill a good-sized book. We 
can onl^^ touch it here generally. 

Tillage an Important Item. — But no one 
thing is more important to the trucker than 
deep, thorough work. He must grow large 
crops on small areas to get a profit on his high- 
priced land and heavy manuring. More than 
this, he must grow several successive crops on 
the same area during the same season. To 
do this, he must have depth of soil, so as to 



TRUCK FARMING 167 

furnish plenty of root-bed and water. He must 
have fine soil, so that the tender roots may not 
be hindered in their growth. He must have it 
both deep and fine, so that he may have a full 
supply of soluble plant food always ready. The 
demand will be enormous, and the supply should 
be equal to every demand. 

Work must be very rapid. The soil must not be 
allowed to bake or crust. The sunshine must find 
ready access, with plenty of air. This will have 
much to do with the quality as well as the quan- 
tity of the crops. No useless plants or harmful 
weeds should be permitted to divide food with 
the growing crop. Selecting a location is quite 
important, but rests upon different reasons now. 
Distance is not so important as it once was. 
Access to a railroad is about the only essential 
point in many cases. Of course, what you expect 
to sell is always a leading point. Costly and per- 
ishable vegetables would require quick access to 
market. Others, which are cheaper and not so 
perishable, may be profitable further on. 

Practical Points about the Business. — Onions, 
Irish potatoes, cabbage, turnips, and such vege- 
tables, can be grown almost anywhere. They 
will bear shipping and keep well. Lettuce, 
radishes, peas, beans, and the like, will not take 
such risks. Two things should be well considered 
by every one before going into the trucking busi- 
ness: Do you know how to grow good vegetables? 
Do you know how to sell vegetables .^^ If you can 
answer yes to both of these, then you may safely 
take up truck-farming as a business. If you can 



168 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

not, and still think you would like the business, 
then you had better work for a year or so with 
some one who makes a success in this line. There 
will be time gained by doing this. 

Relation of Trucking to Population. — As the 
population increases, this line of work will in- 




ONIONS SHOULD FORM A LARGER,PART OF OUR UIET. 

crease. Besides this, as we of the South learn 
to better appreciate our advantages, we will 
do more of this work. Rapid transportation and 
cold storage are making such wonderful improve- 
ments in carrying, handling and preserving vege- 
tables and fruits that distance makes but little 
difference. Almost everything depends upon cli- 
mate and intelligence. Even the most perishable 
article can be kept several days and delivered in 



170 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

perfect condition thousands of miles away. Skill 
and industry will give success almost anywhere 
in the South. The small fruits are generally con- 
sidered as belonging to the trucker's business. 
We will speak of a few of these. 



CHAPTER XXX. 
SPECIAL CROPS. 

Strawberries. — Strawberries find a ready sale 
everywhere. They contribute to health and make 
one of the most enjoyable dishes on the table of rich 
and poor. In many parts of the South they can be 
set out almost any time of the year. June and 
November are perhaps the best months. The rows 
three feet apart and the plants one foot apart, gives 
a good start. If you wish the largest berries, keep 
them in hills. If you want the greatest quantity 
of fruit, let them mat about one foot on the bed, 
but do not let them get too thick. Provide a 
new setting every third year. Some plants have 
only pistillate, or female, blooms. Not more than 
two rows in three should be set in these. Some 
varieties have both staminate and pistillate blooms. 
If you buy your plants, look to these points. 
They need only fair manuring. This should be 
put in before setting plants. If more is desired, 
put on as top dressing in winter. Keep out weeds 
and grass and supply plenty of moisture. Some 
practice mulching with very satisfactory results. 
They do not need to be covered in the winter 
and burned off in the spring, as the Northern 
writers advise. They are shallow-rooted plants, 
and lack of moisture is their greatest enemy. 
Plant early and late varieties, ship only the best 
berries, find a reliable dealer, and you will make 
money with strawberries. 

Raspberries. — Raspberries grow well and sell 
well. A small plot of land will make a large quan- 



172 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

tity. Many varieties are claiming to be best. The 
black caps are very good. Plants should be set four 
feet apart in five-foot rows and kept clean. The 
shoots grow one year and bear the next. The 
same canes never bear but one crop. So it is best 
to cut them out as soon as the young canes get a 
good start. The buds should be picked out when 
about three feet high. This will give them body 
so as to stand strong and branch out well. Proper 
attention to this point will largely increase the 
yield. 

Blackberries and dewberries require much the 
same treatment and pay equally well. Because 
blackberries grow so very abundantly throughout 
the South, in all the fields and along the branches, 
they have not received that attention they de- 
serve. We have not yet found out that culture 
could greatly improve them. It will be a long 
time before the market will be supplied with first- 
class berries. 

Other Important Crops. — Currants, goose- 
berries, figs, and such fruits, belong here. Melons 
also add to the variety of the trucker's prod- 
ucts. Recentl}^ the Georgia watermelon has 
made such a reputation that growing it has 
almost or quite reached the dignity of a separate 
industry. Growers plant the vines ten by ten 
or twelve feet apart. They use fertilizers with 
a high percentage of potash. The cultivation 
is simple and easy. Melons grow very rapidly. 
For shipping purposes the thick-rinds are pre- 
ferred. They are not generally as well flavored 
as the thin-rind varieties. Many growers prefer 



SPECIAL CROPS 173 

to sell in the fields or in car lots, loaded at their 
nearest station. There is nothing the trucker 
grows which surpasses in delicacy and flavor the 
cantaloupe. The genuine article, medium in size, 
thoroughly netted and tender-fleshed, always fluids 
ready sale. Great care is required to keep seed 
pure. They mix easily with other muskmelons. 

The soil should be well pulverized, not very 
rich, and lie to the morning sun. Beds should be 
thrown up lightly, six or eight feet wide. Plant 
one vine every four feet. Work rapidly. The 
worms are apt to destroy all late crops. 

Tomatoes. — Since the organization of Girls' 
Canning Clubs throughout the Southern States, 
the growing of tomatoes is becoming not only a 
profitable business, but a most pleasant occupa- 
tion, especially as home canneries are easily 
operated, and winter supplies stored at such a 
nominal cost. Besides, the girls of the family 
have found a great interest in growing the toma- 
toes and canning them for sale. In this way 
they find a rich source for getting ready money, 
and they should be encouraged in the work. 

Tomatoes are not hard to grow. They are a 
very delicate plant, and must be started in the 
house in boxes about March 1st and reset in the 
field in April. They require rich soft soil and large 
applications of fertilizers, with high per cent of 
available nitrogen and potash. The tables in 
the back of this book contain formulas for truck 
crops. 

It may be interesting to know that all varieties 
of this important food plant came from a single 



174 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

plant found in the Andean district of South 
America. 

Trucking a Paying Business. — Enormous 
yields are produced l:)y truckers on small areas, 
and .immense fortunes are sometimes realized. 
There is a small farm near Paris, which is reported 
as follows: 

This farm contains two and a quarter acres. 

Rents annually for $ 500.00 

Labor account 5,000.00 

Interest on the capital 750.00 

Account for horse power 500.00 

Sundries 250.00 

Manures 1,500.00 

Total amount expended $8,500.00 

By proceeds of sales 13,640.00 



Annual profits $5,140.00 

We find here two valuable lessons: the enor- 
mous productive power of the soil, and the fact 
that great profits may be made by skill and indus- 
try, growing successive crops on the same soil. 
Here we find men with nerve enough to invest 
eight thousand five hundred dollars in a two and 
a quarter acre farm, while many hesitate to risk 
fifty dollars per acre. They nearly doubled their 
investment. This is a very extreme case, but ex- 
treme cases are instructive. If this has been done, 
we may do partly as well. 

He who grows wliat every one needs 
Will find a market for food and seeds. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

FRUIT CULTURE. 

Fruit culture is a profitable line of farming; 
and even where it is not pursued on a commercial 




THE GEORGIA PEACH. 



scale, an orchard adds so much to the health and 
pleasure of life that no farm should be without 
one. It is the privilege of the teacher of Agricul- 



176 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



tiire to arouse the interest of his pupils in Horti- 
culture, and to put them in the way to success 
in this pursuit. 

Besides, no agricultural subject affords oppor- 
tunity for more simple and interesting practical 
laboratory work, and the enterprising teacher will 
welcome the means of giving interest to his class 
work. 

Class Work. — In the home orchard it should 
be the object to secure the largest variety of fruit 
for the longest period possible. If any fruit is 
grown in the section in which the school is located, 
the pupils should be encouraged to find out what 
sort of fruits have been most successful and to 
form some idea of what varieties of apples, peaches, 




ANY FARMER CAN AFFORD A BARREL SPRAY PUMP. 



FRUIT CULTURE 



177 




A WELL PRUNED TREE. 



new varieties of 
fruits that offer any 
promise of value. 

Proper treatment 
of orchards should be 
outhned by calhng 
attention to the 
most successful fruit 
growers of the sec- 
tion, and by indicat- 
ing the best meth- 
ods used b}^ them and 
elsewhere. 

Most interesting- 
lessons may be given 
in the propagation of 
fruit trees by bud- 
ding and grafting 
and by cuttings. The 



etc., are best adapted 
to their locality. This 
forms the basis of 
success with fruits, 
for it should be well 
known that little re- 
liance is to be placed 
on the representa- 
tions of agents and 
catalogues of various 
nurseries. 

In addition, pupils 
should learn the im- 
portance of testing 




PEACH TWIGS SHOWING UNTHINNED, POORLY 
THINNED AND WELL THINNED FRUIT. 



178 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



following descriptions of these operations contain 
the most important matters in connection with 
them and will serve as a basis for laboratory 
work. 

Budding. — Budding is one of the most econom- 
ical methods of production of fruit trees. It is 
more certain to reproduce the qualities of the tree 




FIG. I. 



PREPARING BUDS. 



to be propagated than the use of seed, and matur- 
ity can be hastened. It can be used in many 
varieties of fruit where cuttings are not successful 
and it requires less of the tree that is to be propa- 
gated than does grafting. It is at present the 



most common method of propagating fruit trees, 
and especially peaches. 



FRUIT CULTURE 



179 





Fro. 2 

PREPARATION OF STOCK TO RECEIVE BUDS. 





FIG. 3. 

(a and b) buus inserted and wrapped; (c) old stock removed. 



180 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

The season for budding is from June to Sep- 
tember while the tree is growing and the bark will 
shp. The method is as follows: Cut from the 
tree that is to be propagated, a limb of the present 
season's growth, and remove the leaves, leaving 
part of the stem attached to the bud, as in figure 
1. This is called a bud stick. Bud sticks should 
be kept carefully wrapped in the moist cloth until 
immediately before using. In the stalk or tree 
in which the bud is to be inserted, cut a T shaped 
incision as in a of figure 2. From the bud stick 
cut one of the buds as in figure 1. Pull back the 
corners of the bark of the stalk as in b of figure 2 
and insert the bud as in a of figure 3, being careful 
to secure contact with the inner surface of the 
stalk which is exposed by lifting the bark, 1\\ 
cutting the bud it is customary to include a thin 
slice of the wood which may either be removed 
before inserting in the stalk or left with the bud. 

The next step in the work is to wrap the 
inserted bud as in b of figure 3 with raffia or with 
wTapping cotton. This wrapping should be re- 
moved as soon as the union between bud and 
stalk is complete. If the budding is done before 
August 1st, it is called a June or summer bud, 
and the upper part of the stalk should be removed 
when tl e ligature is taken ott', so as to throw the 
sap into the bud. If the operation takes place 
after August 1st, the bud is called a dormant 
bud and is not to grow until the following spring 
when the top of the stalk must be cut off. 

Grafting. — For certain purposes grafting is 
more convenient than budding, though it requires 
more of the wood to be propagated. 



FRUIT CULTURE 181 

The tAvig or shoot taken from the tree to be 
propagated is called the scion, and that into 
which it is grafted is called the stock. The scion 
shonld have three buds. It should be cut when 
the. tree is dormant and stored away in damp 
moss or sand, in a cool place, till the beginning 
of the growing season, when it may be inserted 
in the stock. Roots for root grafting should be 
stored in the same wa}^ 

Two kinds of grafting more generally used, 
called whip grafting and cleft grafting, are here 
described. 

Cleft grafting is especially adapted to use in 
large stocks above ground. _ The scion should 
be cut to a wedge shape with one side thicker 
than the other, leaving one bud near the upper 
part of the wedge. The stock should be cut with 
a saw so that the bark is not loosened at any 
point. It should then be split and the cleft 
opened so that the wedge of the scion may be 
inserted. Care must be taken that the growing 
part of the bark of the scion shall come in contact 
with the corresponding layer in the bark of the 
stock. The success of the graft depends on the 
contact of this inner juicy layer of bark. It 
remains to exclude the air which is done by the 
use of grafting w^ax either spread over the surface 
of the joint or incorporated in the cloth or cord 
which is wrapped about the union of the scion and 
stock. The process is illustrated by pictures 
showing stock and scion and the completed graft. 

Whip grafting is adapted to use with smaller 
stocks and especially in root grafting. The 



182 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



diameter of the scion and stock should be nearly 
the same. To make a whip graft, cut the stock off 
diagonally, one long smooth cut with a sharj) 
knife, leaving about three-fourths of an inch of 



m 

'I 





CLEFT GRAFTING AND WHIP GRAFTS. 



cut surface as shown in figure 1. About a quarter 
of an inch fFom the upper end of the cut surface 
split the stock vertically. Prepare the scion in 
the same way, cutting lower end. Then insert 



FRUIT CULTURE 183 

the scion in stock and wrap as in figure 3, being 
careful that growing surfaces of the bark are in 
contact. If above ground exchide the air with 
wax as in cleft grafting. 

Cuttings. — Many plants can be grown from 
cuttings — as figs, currants, grapes, etc. 

Hard wood cuttings are made when the wood 
becomes dormant, and kept in a cool place in wet 
sand until the roots begin to grow and are put 
out in the spring. A cutting should have two buds, 
one to be put under the ground and one above. 
It is important in making cuttings to reduce the 
leafage to a minimum so as to prevent evaporation 
and wilting. 

Soft wood cuttings are made of many flowers 
and house plants. Geraniums are frequently so 
propagated. A common use of this method is in 
planting sweet potatoes by cuttings of the vines. 
The mistake is frequently made of leaving too 
much vine and leaf. Two buds are sufficient and 
such a cutting will grow off with less wilting. 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

CROP pp:sts. 

Crop pests are usually divided into two general 
classes: insect pests and fungous diseases. Of 
the two, insects are perhaps the more destructive 
to farm crops because we have not yet learned to 
protect birds and other enemies of insects. Insects 
are tlic most voracious of all animal life, some hav- 
ing been known to eat their own weight more than 
fifty times in a day of tw^enty-four hours. We 
shall first take up a study of the insects. 

Insects Generally. — There are two classes of 
insects, biting insects and sucking insects, deter- 
mined by the method by which they feed upon 
plant life. Biting insects, of course, bite and chew 
their food while sucking insects suck the juices 
from the plants. These two classes of insects 
must be dealt with in accordance with their meth- 
ods of eating. For the biting insects we must use 
arsenic or some other poison, that will kill if the 
insect eats it, and for the sucking insects we must 
use some spray that will kill by coming in contact 
with the body. If we tried to apply something 
to the sucking insect to eat, the poison would 
have to go through the tree and be sucked out 
through the juices of same. This would, of course, 
kill the tree, and we might as well let the insect 
kill the tree and save the cost of the poison. Bit- 
ing insects are for the most part invested with 
such a heavy covering that it would take a very 
strong spray to kill them, in fact so strong that the 
tree or plant would be injured, if not killed. There- 



CROP PESTS 185 

fore it has been found best to apply poisons to the 
foHage or other parts of the plants and let this 
class of insects commit suicide — so to speak — 
by eating this poison. 

Biting Insects. — Under this heading we are 
to learn about several of the more common 
injurious insects and the best methods of con- 
trolling them. 

(a) The Cottoti Boll Weevil.— No insect has 
been so prominently before the public in late 




MEXICAN BOLL WEEVIL; LARvJf, PUPA AND ADULTS. 

(Year Book, U. S. Departmenl Agriculture, 1903.) 

years as the Mexican cotton boll weevil. In fact, 
all the newspapers give space to this unwelcome 
visitor in which they could make thousands of 
dollars otherwise with advertising matter. But 
why do they give him so much space? By so 
doing they save the readers of the paper millions 
instead of thousands of dollars, for the reason 
that readers may see the papers and learn how to 
control the weevil. This is one biting insect that 
it does not pay to spray for control. His control 



186 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

will depend entirely on crop rotation, burning 
of old plants in which he may winter, and fall 
plowing, and the planting of an early maturing 
cotton. There has been no other successful 
method vet found. 




BOLL WEEVILS DESTROYING COTTON BOLL. 

(,Year Book U. S. Department Agriculture, 1.903.) 

(b) CurcuUo 07' Peach Weevil. — This is a very 
conmion weevil of the orchard and usually bites 
the peach or plum, lays the egg, which hatches 
into what we call a worm, or, in fact, a larva, and 
we have wormy peaches and plums. The remedy 
for this pest is arsenate of lead 2 pounds to 50 
gallons of water when shucks fall from the flowers. 
Second application, about three weeks after first. 
Paris green may be used. 



CROP PESTS 187 

(c) Grain Weevils. — ^These little pests destroy 
nianj^ thousands of dollars' worth of grain in the 
course of a year and should be destroyed them- 
selves, so easy are they to control. They are 
almost everywhere and are black or brownish-red 
in color, quite slender, and resemble somewhat 
the corn bill-bugs. They can be easily controlled 
either by sprinkling the grain with bisulphide of 
carbon, or by evaporating the carbon bisulphide 
one ounce to fifty cubic feet of air space. This is 
very inflammable and no fire of any kind should 
be brought about it. One should not even smoke 
about the bin in which the grain is stored for some 
time after the application. It might pay to sug- 
gest that this remedy is more effective when a 
special air tight bin is constructed to store the 
grain w^iile being treated. 

(d) The Codling Moth or Apple Moth.—Thh 
is a small dark colored moth that appears about 
the time the apple trees are in full bloom. The 
moth lays a single egg on the fruit at the point 
where the flower drops off and, when this larva 
comes from the egg, it feeds on the apple until 
grown, and when mature, eats its way out, goes 
to some suitable place and spins a cocoon. In 
this it remains till the next spring, when it begins 
its evil work again. 

The treatment for this moth is arsenate of 
lead or Paris green. If Paris green is used, mix 
slaked lime with it in the proportion of about 
10 to 15 parts of lime to one part of Paris green 
and make light applications three times in as 



188 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



will have very little or no 

-This is a common insect 
and the hickorv and oak 



many weeks and you 
trouble with this pest. 

(e) Ttvig Girdler.— 
about the nut groves, 
trees and is very de- 
structive to these 
trees. He trims them 
a little too close and 
in the wrong season. 
He bites around the 
branches and cuts them 
off almost a s smooth 
as one c o u 1 d do it 
with a pocket knife, 
and then goes out on 
the branch he has thus 
destroyed and 1 a y s 
m any eggs to be 
hatched while the wood 
is souring. These eggs 
remain till hatched 
and the larvae are full 
grown by the next 
summer. 

Treatment of this 
pest. — If young trees 
are severely attacked, 
the beetles should be 
hunted out and de- 
stroyed, but on t h e 
older treeSj the 

branches should be collected and burned. The 
trees shoidd be sprayed twice with arsenate of 




MOTHS AND PUPA OF PEACH TREE BORER 
NATURAL SIZE. 



CROP PESTS 189 

lead. These suggestions will if carried out control 
the girdler. 

(f) Potato Bug: A very common pest to all 
who have ever tried to grow Irish potatoes. To 
describe this insect here would be throwing away 
space, so we go on to the remedy. Apply Paris 
green mixed with flour or water, the flour being- 
preferable, in the proportion of twenty pounds 
flour to one pound Paris green. This is a sure 
remedy if applied in time and will not injure the 
potatoes if properly applied. It should be applied 
early in the morning before the dew has dried 
off from the plants, so the Paris green will stick. 
If the beetles come out again, the same remedy 
should be applied a second time. 

(h) Cabbage Wo7^m. — This worm will be recog- 
nized by all who have cabbage, as a familiar white 
cabbage butterfly or a striped worm that goes 
into the cabbage and eats it away. 

Arsenical poisons can be used to advantage, 
and Paris green is very effective, only do not 
apply these poisons for three weeks before using 
the vegetables for the table. Sometimes poison 
bran mash used as for cut worms is very effective 
and can be applied with perfect safety. 

(g) Cut Worms. — Everybody knows the cut 
worms, but it is suggested that a school should 
have a collection of all insects that can be found 
in the locality of the school including the cut 
worms. This is a good idea, and should be carried 
out. 

The effective way to get ahead of the cut 
worms is to put a small paper collar around the 



190 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

trunk of every small plant. This is a sure remedy 
and can be done at a very small cost. The paper 
will last almost the entire season, and very few 
have to be replaced. Bran mash dropped around 
the young plants is also effective. This poison 
is composed of: 

Bran, 25 pounds. 
Paris green, J pound. 
Cheap molasses, 1 quart. ■ 
Water as needed to moisten. 

For smaller amounts of poison use correspond- 
ingly smaller quantities of the ingredients. 

Sucking Insects. — This class of insects must 
be treated differently from those mentioned above, 

GIPSY MOTH, Porthetria dispar L. 

ORIGINATION AND SPREAD.— The Gipsy Moth has been a serious 
pest in Europe, at intervals, since the first authentic report in 1662. Records show 
that large areas often embracing thousands of square miles of forest trees have been 
entirely stripped of their leaves. Gipsy Moths were first brought into this country 
in 1S6S. About 1890 they had become such a serious pest throughout the eastern 
part of Massachusetts, some twenty towns having become infested, that the authori- 
ties commenced the task of e.\termination. Previous to 1900 a million and a quarter 
dollars had been spent with the result that so few moths could be found that the Leg- 
islature stopped the work of control. By 1905 the moth had increased to such an ex- 
tent that appropriations were made to commence again the work of suppression. The 
insect had spread into Rhode Island, Maine, Connecticut and New Hampshire. It 
has not yet, however, become established outside of the New England States. The 
spread of the Gipsy Moth is comparatively .slow because the female does not fly far. 

PLANTS PREFERRED AND EXTENT OF INJURY.~The laws and 
appropriations for suppressing Gipsy Moths have generally applied also to the sup- 
pression of Brown-Tail Moths. The following figures show private expenditures and 
public appropriations for combating both insects. These figures do not include any 
estimate of damage caused by the depredations of Gipsy and Brown-Tail Moths. 

MASSACHUSETTS: Amount expended by the Commonwealth of 

Massachusetts from 1890 to 1899 and appropriated from 190.5 to 1910, $2,770,000 00 
Amount expended by cities, towns, individuals, etc., in Massachusetts 

from 1900 to 1904, when there were no state appropriations 3,136,090 00 

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT: Appropriations, 1906 to 1910, 1,082,500 00 

MAINE: Appropriations, 1905 to 1910 120,000 GO 

NEW YORK: Appropriation, 1910 50,000 00 

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Appropriations, 1907 to 1910 50,000 00 

RHODE ISLAND: Appropriations, 1906 to 1910 41,100 00 

CONNECTICUT: Appropriations, 1906 to 1910 20,800 00 

Total $7,270,490 00 

REMEDIES. — Paint egg clusters with creosote in fall, winter or spring. 
Spraying in June with arsenate of lead is an efficient treatment. Band trees with bur- 
lap and examine daily. 

{Copied from New York Slate Deparltnent of Agriculture.) 



CROP PESTS 



1^1 




GIPSY MOTH. 
SRE DESCRIPTION AND REMEDIES ON PAGE 190. 



192 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

as they feed so differently. The remedy must 
come in contact with the body of the insect and 
be of such nature as to kill when it so touches him. 

(a) San Jose Scale. — This is the most common 
of all the sucking insects, and can be recognized 
as a small gray scale-like insect sticking close to 
the trees on which it is commonly found; it is 
common on fruit trees, shade trees and ornamental 
plants, and will kill any of them if left to do its 
work. The universal remedy for the scale is the 
lime-sulphur wash, which is made as follows: 

15 pounds lime, 
15 pounds sulphur, 
50 gallons water. 

This must be thoroughly boiled. To use it 
then it must be reduced in the proportion of one 
gallon of the concentrate to eight or ten gallons 
of water. 

(b) Plant Lice. — Lice will be generally recog- 
nized and a description will not be attempted. 
They frequent the tender young shoots of apples, 
grapes, roses, etc. The treatment is as follows: 

1 pound whale oil soap, 
8 gallons water, 

thoroughly mixed, [or] 

1 pound tobacco, 
1 gallon water, 

mixed and stood for an hour. 

Kerosene may be used but is not best. If 
used, it should be emulsified as follows: 

Half pound hard soap, 
1 gallon soft water, 
1 quart kerosene. 

Churn for 20 minutes and mix thoroughly', add 



CROP PESTS 193 

two and a half gallons water, and j^ou will have 
7% emulsion. 

(c) Harlequin Cabbage Bug. — This is a flat 
looking small bug marked with conspicuous j^ellow 
or red. The leaves attacked shrivel up and turn 
brown. This bug is often known as the calico 
or terrapin bug. The eggs are very peculiarly 
marked black and white eggs and in patches on the 
leaves of the plants attacked. 

The remedy is to clean up the garden in the 
fall and plant trap crops in spring and summer. 
There is no application of poisons that has proven 
sufficient. Kale or mustard are good trap crops, 
and when they become loaded should be collected 
and burned. Kerosene may be poured over trap 
crop. 

Fungi. — This is about as much as need be said 
about the common insects of the farm. In addition 
to the insect enemies of farm crops we have many 
fungi that destroy millions of dollars' worth of 
farm crops. There is only one general remedy to 
get rid of or reduce fungi, and that is to rotate crops 
when the fungus appears. We must bear in mind 
that the fungus is left in the field even when the 
crop is taken off, and needs only another growing 
crop of the same kind in order to thrive again in 
spring. It is important therefore that we dodge 
the fungus if we would reduce it to a minimum. 

Self boiled lime and sulphur is the best univer- 
sal remedy as an application to growing fungi. 
It does not injure the trees very much and will 
kill the fungus if carefully applied. It is strictly 



194 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 




FUNGI TAKING THE 1.1I-E 



a summer remedy and is never used in winter. 
To make it, place 
twenty pounds of 
lump lime in a bar- 
rel and pour three 
gallons of cold water 
over it. After the 
slaking is thoroughly 
under way add 
twenty pounds 
flower of sulphur 
free from 1 u m p s . 
The heat thus gen- 
erated will bring about the proper combination be- 
tween these two ingredients. Add more water till 

a paste is produced. 
Add more col d 
water in about fif- 
teen minutes as soon 
as the boiling is over. 
^Fo this must be ad- 
ded water till the 
total quantity is 
brought up to about 
one hundred gallons. 
Never put hot water 
in this mixture. 

This may be ap- 
plied to brown rot 
of apples, and peaches, and any other fungous 
disease that should appear in the orchard, garden 
or field. 



^•^S^'.v;,:-;^^; 




FUNGOUS GROWTH ON TOMATO A COSTLY DISEASE. 




CHAPTER XXXIII. 
FARM ANIMALS. 

Man Dependent on 
Farm Animals. — At 

one time in the history 
of the world man per- 
haps was not com- 
pletely dependent on 
farm animals; but 
under our present 
organization of so- 
ciety he is depend- 
ent on animals in 
a large measure 
(1) for food, clothing, and other products, (2) for 
services as beasts of burden, (3) to help maintain 
the fertility of the soil, (4) to help man to keep 
himself busy during winter. Many other uses 
may be mentioned, among which may be con- 
sidered that of serving as man's companions. 
Our animal friends deserve a prominent place in 
our estimation and must have this in order to 
become of greatest use to us. 

Classes of Farm Animals. — ^ While no attempt 
will be given to go into detail in this short chapter, 
it might be well for us to consider the animals to 
which we owe so much for our welfare. Among 
these are especially the horse, the cow, the sheep, 
the hog, the goat, the mule, and smaller animals 
such as the barnyard fowl, the dog, and the cat. 



196 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



The Animal in Relation to Soil Building. — 

Tliere is no better soil l)uilder than animal manures; 
and therefore if animals are properly cared for 
and the manures carefully saved, this can be made 
a source of considerable income. In pasturing 




THE MOTIVE POWER OK THE FARM. 



stock, practically all the manures are left to enrich 
the pasture soil. No country thrives like the live 
stock country because of these facts. It is easier 
to keep the soil fertile and to raise large crops. 

The Relation of Farm Animals to Crops. — 
In the South where cotton has been the only crop, 



FARM ANIMALS 



197 




THE BEST HORSE lb THE BEST INVESTMENT. 



198 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

we need live stock to help initiate a system of 
diversified agriculture. Crops can often be raised 
and fed to live stock and in this way be made to 
yield larger profits than any one-crop system. 
It is said that the man who would prosper must 
not sell all the crops he grows, but must keep and 
feed a large portion of them. 

Feeding Animals. — In j)]anning a year's crops, 
provision must be made for all the stock on the 
farm. Many times animals are not capable of 
good service because they are so poorly fed. A 
farm that grows plenty of food for the animals 
that are kept on it will always be found a success. 
It is only the lack of this that makes many a farm 
poor. We must work out just what our animals 
need and then try to supply' these needs. In fact, 
we must not only try to supply them, but we ihust 
supply them, if we keep the stock. 

Feeding the Horse. — X good rule to go by in 
feeding the horse is first to know what he weighs 
and then feed to him each day about one pound 
of concentrates, such as corn and grain, and one 
pound of hay to each hundred pounds of live 
weight. In hard working season, a tw^elve hun- 
dred pound horse should have about sixteen 
pounds per day of each kind of food, and the 
quantity can be lessened when there is no work 
to be done. It takes less to keep up a fat horse 
than a poor one. 

Care of the Horse. — Whether the horse is to 
be plowed or kept for driving, he should be regu- 
larly groomed. It adds to his health and feeling, 
and we get so much good from him that we cer- 



FARM ANIMALS 



199 



tainly should try to make life as easy as possible 
for him. We too often forget that the horse is 
dependent on us for his verj^ life, and would die 
in a short while if we did not look after him. We 
also forget that the horse does perhaps more than 
the man in the production of the crop. He should 
therefore be entitled to the benefits of the crop, 
and should not be starved when the corn runs 
low. Next year we should provide better for him. 
Improvement of Live Stock. — A great im- 
provement can be made in our farm animals, if 
we will carefully mate and select them. This is 
easily done, inasmuch as they breed only at our 
will. Who does not recognize the superiority of 
the modern Poland China or Berkshire or Duroc 
Jersey hog over the old-time razor back.^^ Yet all 
this has been brought about by careful breeding. 
This improvement can be carried on indefinitely 




EVOLUTION OF THE KANSAS STEER. 



200 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



if we will study our animals and select and breed 
for the best and most desirable qualities. 

A Good Way to Improve the Stock of Cows. — 

Where a farmer has a good man^^ native cows and 
does not wish to sell them and start over, he may 
with great profit invest in a good bull to keep with 
his herd. This will be the starting point for an 
improved herd. When a farmer once sees how 




A HEREFORD SIRE. 



much improvement can be brought about in one 
generation, he will think differently of his herd. 

The same method will work with his hogs. 
He will be able to make great improvements in 
one generation with his hogs by introducing a 
good boar into the herd. 

Cattle. — The different breeds of cattle are 



FARM ANTMALS 



201 



given in another cliapter, hut it is well to state 
here that every farmer should have a few of the 
best beef eattle to tread his pasture and afford 
meat and some sales as well. A beef herd will 
grow very rapidly and soon be a source of income, 
if cared for. The most practical beef cattle for 
the South are perhaps the Herefords, as they are 
of cinick growth and are excellent for food pur- 
poses. 

Hogs. — Hogs may be divided into two general 
classes, the bacon hogs and lard hogs. Or they 
may be classed again into the three heads: small 
breeds, medium breeds, and large breeds. Of the 




SOUliltkN BKEl) BEkKhlUKi': KNOWN AS IHE "MokH;AGE LIFTER." 



202 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



small breeds may be mentioned the Victoria, the 
Small Yorkshire, and the Essex; the medium, 
Berkshire, Poland China, and Duroc Jersey, 
and the large, the Tam worth, the Large York- 
shire and the Chester White. 

The best hog for middling meat is the Tam- 
worth, while the best perhaps for lard is the Duroc 
Jersey or the Berkshire. Of course, every breeder 




HOME GROWN LAMBS BEAT THE MARKET MEAT. 

has his choice in the matter of breeds and no two 
will agree on all of these. Hogs should be carefully 
fed and regularly looked after, if we would get the 
best results. 

Sheep. — Sheep demand special attention and 



Farm animals 203 

unless we make up our mind to give them this 
attention we need not invest in them. They are 
easily kept and pay big dividends when properly 
looked after, but should be most carefully guarded 
and protected from dogs and the lambs kept from 
buzzards and owls. Several years ago there were 
a great many flocks of sheep in the southern part 
of Georgia, but there are very few found there 
now. This is due to the fact that the country is 
becoming more thickly settled and sheep have 
very poor ranges at the present time. 

Health of Domestic Animals. — It nuist })e 
remembered that animals as well as men get sick 
now and then and should be cared for. Their 
sickness is usually the result of our carelessness, 
and we often leave them to die without so much 
as knowing that they were sick at all. When we 
have to work them harder than usual, we should 
give them more care than usual. Sometimes it 
is only the money investment we consider in the 
case of sickness among our horses or other domes- 
tic animals. This should not be the case. 
It should be our duty to love and care for 
our animals just as, or almost as, we do for our- 
selves. Then we do not mind calling on tlie 
horse for the service we deserve from him. 

Animal Husbandry. — iVnimal husbandry is 
almost unknown among our farming class, and yet 
would mean so much to our farmers if they could 
awake to the importance and value of the subject. 
This great subject treats of the raising and proper 
care of farm animals, a subject about which we 
know so little. When we come to consider how 



204 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

large a portion of our farm products is con- 
verted into animal products before we can use 
them, the subject makes an appeal to us. In fact, 
we have greater opportunities on the farm the 
moment we make the live stock a part of our 
business. We then begin to grow in wealth and 
prosperity, and I think in happiness. 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 
DAIRY HUSBANDRY FOR THE FARM. 

Need of Good Farm Dairies. — For a study of 
this subject, the higher classes should get blanks 
and fill them in with reference to the conditions 
that exist on the farms in the locality of the school. 
The number of cows in milking, the total number 
of gallons of milk gotten from the entire herd 
and the quality of the milk should be known. 
Milk is one of the very best diets, and certainly 
should not be denied growing children if we would 
keep good health on the farm. Children that use 
milk constantly in the diet usually grow faster, 
learn faster, think clearer and in every way are 
superior to those that are deprived of milk, other 
things being equal. It is imperative therefore 
that we have good sanitary dairies on all our 
farms, in order that we continue to supply from 
the country fine fresh blood with which to develop 
our great cities. 

What is Milk? — We ask this question here, 
but leave the answer for pupils to find in any book, 
cyclopaedia, or dictionary they wish to consult. 
Only they must find a good definition. 

The Source and Formation of Milk.— Milk 
is formed as we all know in the udder or mammary 
glands. It is claimed by authorities that milk is 
formed as it is drawn from the udder and is not 
collected in the udder as we are in the habit of 
thinking. We sometimes say that the cow's 
udder is full of milk. This is not literally true 
according to the best writers on the subject. 



206 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 




DAIRY HITSBANDRY FOR THE FARM 



207 



What is it that does fill the udder in this way? 
It is perhaps a heavy flow of blood, which has to 
be filtered only to become milk. The milk glands 
filter this bloody when it comes from the teats 
in the form of white milk. The blood is one of 
the most vital forces in the body, and therefore 
during milking season, the cow should have the 
l)est of attention and care, if we would get the 




A FARM BARN. 

a — The bam with which he started. 
& — Shows how dairy farming pays. 



best results. It may be said that to milk her is 
to take a great deal of her life blood in order to 
keep up the more easily our own life blood. It 
would not be just nor wise to take this l)lood from 
her and at the same time return for it imkind 
treatment. In fact we get less milk the less 
gently we deal with the cow. 



208 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

Beef and Dairy Breeds of Cattle. — Beef breeds 
of cattle differ from dairy breeds in that they must 
have trim bodies with heavy quarters and stomachs 
not greatly enlarged. The fat must go into the 
choice parts for food instead of into the stomach 
and into milk. The beef breeds are, Aberdeen- 
Angus, Herefords, Sussex, West Highland, Gallo- 
way, Devon, Red Polled, Shorthorns, and Polled 
Durhams. The milk breeds or dairy breeds are 
Jersey, Brown Swiss, Guernsey, Ayrshire, Kerrj^ 
Holstein-Friesian, and Dutch Belted. When pos- 
sible it would pay to visit a dairy in order to see 
all the breeds mentioned above. One thing we can 
do is to describe all of them from our various 
readings and references. 

The most popular beef breeds in the South 
are Herefords, Devons, and Shorthorns, and the 
most popular dairy breeds, the Jersey, Holstein- 
Friesian and Guernsey. The average farmer 
needs a dual purpose cow, one that gives lots of 
milk, but may be bred for beef too. 

Feeding the Dairy Cow. — There is no more 
important item than that of feeding the dairy 
cow, if we would get a regular supply of milk of 
high quality. The nature and quantity of food 
determine the nature and quantity of milk, and 
to give this food at regular feeding times, and to 
milk the cows at regular times are almost as 
necessary as anything else. A cow is a very 
delicate animal and responds to good treatment 
quite as much as a human lacing does. 

A good ratio of foods for a Jersey cow of medium 
weight per day is: 



DAIRY HUSBANDRY FOR THE FARM 209 

Cotton seed meal, 4 pounds, 
Shorts or corn meal, 2 pounds, 
Bran, 2 pounds, 
Silage, 30 pounds. 

This should be divided into two equal parts 
and fed to the cow twelve hours apart and about 




MAKING HAY THE COW S BEST FEED. 



the time she is to be milked. When stover is given 
to a cow, she will eat about 6 to 10 pounds per day, 
if not too highly fed on other things. To feed 
other concentrated foods we should get their 
values in comparison with the above, and feed 
accordingly. It is to be hoped that cotton seed 
meal and clover ha^^s will be fed far more gener- 
ally to cattle in the South than heretofore. 



210 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

The above food should cause a cow to produce 
two and a half gallons of milk per day, and if she 
does not, it is likely to be the fault of the owner 
unless the cow is a poor cow. 

Fat in Milk. — We usually know the fat in 
milk as butter, or cream out of which the butter 
is made. This fat exists in milk in the form of 
small globules or round globes that can be seen 
and counted by the aid of the microscope. They 
constitute about 3}/^% to 43/2% of the total 
weight of the milk, the exact per cent being 
determined by the richness of the milk. A cow 
should not be kept for milking purposes unless 
she gives milk with at least 33^% fat. 

Bacteria in Milk. — It is well for us to remem- 
ber that bacteria exist almost everywhere, in the 
air, in the soil, and in water, and we must exercise 
every possible precaution in order to keep them 
out of any medium in which they are in the habit 
of growing. Milk is the very best food known for 
bacteria, and they develop faster in it than in 
any other kind of medium. One universal rule 
therefore is to keep all the milk vessels absolutely 
clean. We cannot afford to do less than this, and 
to do so they must be scalded out every time they 
are used, and left in the sun to air as much as 
possible. It is safe to estimate according to the 
best authorities that one ounce of milk will con- 
tain if left open a short while under normal con- 
ditions, over 2,000,000 bacteria, and these will 
multiply very rapidly if not checked by heating the 
milk, or disinfecting it. We may also affirm that 
5% of all samples of town milk contain tubercular 



DAIRY HUSBANDRY FOR THE FARM 



211 



bacilli, and that one calf out of every four is born 
tuberculous. All kinds of contagious diseases 
such as scarlet fever, typhoid fever, measles, 
smallpox, diphtheria, and many others thrive in 
milk and are thus transferred from one person to 
another. There are many thousand people who 




INTERIOR OK A DAIRY BARN. 



die every year on account of careless methods 
with the home supply of milk. 

Why Milk Sours. — Not all the bacteria in milk 
are harmful bacteria. Many of them are indis- 
pensable to the natural processes of dairying. 
The lactic acid bacteria take possession of the milk 
immediately after it is stored away, in fact, as it 
comes from the udder, and soon produce lactic 



212 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

acid in it. This they do by decomposing the milk 
sugar that is in fresh milk, to the extent of about 
43^% of the entire weight of the milk. At least a 
hundred kinds of lactic bacteria have been identi- 
fied in milk, and therefore we must not look upon 
them as being one particular kind of germ. 

Blue Milk and Ropy Milk. — We merely sug- 
gest here that nothing is wrong with the cow when 
we see blue milk, yellow milk, red milk or ropy 
milk. It is only a lack of proper care with the milk 
and the vessels in which it is kept. A particular 
kind of bacterium is associated with each one of 
these reactions, and precautions must be taken to 
keep this specific organism out of the milk if we 
would restore it to its former wholesomeness. 

Bacteria in Butter. — It is safe to say that the 
sweet flavor and aroma of butter is traceable 
directly to the bacteria existing in it. The cream 
ripens only when these bacteria cause certain 
forms of fermentation to set in. It is said that 
one gramme of butter contains twenty millions 
of bacteria, a number so large that we cannot 
even think of it except relatively. If the butter 
has been exposed to disease bacteria, it will soon 
become thoroughly infested and will cause disease 
and death. Many cases of sickness and deaths 
have been traced directly to butter. Clean butter 
is most wholesome, but filthy butter is not only 
unwholesome, but very dangerous. 

Sampling Milk. — It will not be a great while 
before we can have samples of milk examined at 
our Experiment Stations free of charge by an 
expert kept there for that purpose. This should 



DAIRY HUSBANDRY FOR THE FARM 



213 



be the case now. Every farmer sliould know jnst 
what kind of milk he is using on bis talile and 
sbould be advised as often as necessary of ils 
qiiaUty and cleanliness. We should also know 




A CREAM SEPARATOR A TRIUMPH OF SCIENCE. 

the exact food value of the milk of our herds, and 
when this is not up to the standard we should change 
the food of the cow or have her sent to the butcher 
for beef. This is what frequent_examination of 



214 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

milk would do for us. It would keep us safe from 
impure milk, and give us an interest in the subject 
and help us to remember to keep our vessels 
cleaner and milk purer. 

Milk as Food. — It is hardly necessary to say 
that milk is most excellent food. It is perhaps 
the best food we have, and the nearest a complete 
food. The three classes of food so essential are 
albuminoids, fats, and carbohydrates, or sugars. 
Milk has a large per cent of all these. The al- 
buminoids are found in the casein, the fats in the 
butter and cream, and the carbohydrates or 
sugars in the milk sugar. 

Milk is not hard to digest, if taken slowly and 
in proper ciuantities. It may be used in all kinds 
of cooking with good effect, and without injuring 
it as food. 

Products of Milk. — All forms of cheese are 
made from milk; the chedder, the Edam, Stilton, 
Rocjuefort, Camembert, Brie, and a dozen others. 
Most of them are made somewhat after the same 
general manner. The whey is allowed to drain 
out, and the curd thus formed })ecomes the basis 
of the cheese manufacture. 

Skimmed milk, butter milk and whey are used 
to great advantage both on the table and to feed 
to animals. They all contain food value and 
should be considered in estimating the value of the 
dairy to the home. 

Dried casein has been used in certain manu- 
facturing processes to advantage. It is used as 
sizing for paper. This is made from the curd by 
treating it with certain acids and then letting it 



DAIRY HUSBAND in FOR THE FARM 



215 













Fwi 




^S^l 


^^^^^^^^^^RI>, :«£',. J 





216 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON vSCHOOLS 

dry. It is then stored in vessels and sold for 
sizing. 

Milk sugar is made almost directly from the 
whey and is therefore not ver^^ costly. This 
material is the basis for many of the infant foods 
so popular in our homes. It was once used only 
for medicinal purposes, hut its merit became so 
evident on further examination that it lias become 
very popular as a food. 



CHAPTER XXXV. 
POULTRY FOR THE FARM. 

It seems rather strange that farmers will work 
hard all the year and eat "hog and hominy" and 
then have to buy much of the chickens they eat 
if they eat any, when poultry can be raised so 
easily. If we once begin to think about it, chicken 
is not only l)etter to eat, but in fact cheaper than 
most other meats, especially if we have to buy 
the other meats. One of the most pleasant things 
one can do on the farm is to have varied interests, 
so if one thing falls partly through, others will 
help to save us. The matter of raising poultry 
has been looked upon as child's play long enough. 
We should awake and really go into this as a real 
farm business. It will pay and prove exceedingly 
pleasant. Only a few suggestions will be given 
on this subject. It is a special business, but a 
small poultry business should be run in connection 
with every farm, if for no other reason, to get the 
boys and girls interested in such work and show 
them another side of farm life. 

Types of Chickens. — There are several breeds 
of chickens and each breed has been produced in 
response to a certain demand. While this is not 
literally true, it is in general true. There is the 
egg bird, the meat bird, the dual purpose bird, 
and the fanc^^ breed. 

(a) The Egg Bii'd.—The most common of the 
egg birds we have in the South are the Leghorns, 
the Anconas, and the Minorcas. The Leghorns 



218 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



themselves may be divided into the white, black, 
brown, buff, rose-comb, and others. This class of 
chickens has been bred solely for lajdng purposes; 
and while they are non-sitters, they pay if kept 
for the purpose for which they have been bred. 




BEST AND CHEAPEST MEAT FOR EVERY FARMER. 

Careful attention should be given to their diet and 
care, especially in winter. 

(b) The Meat Bird. — To this class belong the 
Cochins, Brahmas, and Langshans. These three 



POULTRY FOR THE FARM 



219 



breeds are of Asiatic origin and are large, heavy, 
awkward birds. They grow rapidly and make 
fine table birds, but may not be quite as palatable 
as other breeds. The Light Brahma is the largest 
chicken known, the cock weighing about 12 pounds 
and the hen about 10 or a little less. 

(c) The Dual 
Purjjose Bird. 
— To this class 
!)elong the Wy- 
andottes. Barred 
and other Ply- 
mouth Rocks, 
Rhode Island 
'.r^. Reds, and Orp- 
/'^' ingtons. As the 
-^;- name suggests, 
; ,; these birds are 
/^J^.- good for laying 
"^iif and the table, 
;;^, and should be 
'_ the most popu- 
lar for the aver- 
a g e farmer. 
They will lay 
and hatch the 
eggs if required to do so. 

(d) Fancy Birds. — There are a great many 
breeds of chickens that are not grown for any 
other purpose except to show. These are called 
fancy breeds. To this class belong such breeds 
as the Bantams, the Silkies, Frizzles, and a few 
others of less importance. These will not reward 








■ajgy/WttiJ ' '■ J^ ' 



BROWN LEGHORNS FOR EGGS. 



220 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



the keeper unless he expects to win prizes or 
something of the kind with them. They are not 
recommended to the farmer as worthy of his 
attention. 

Standard Bred Utility Hens for Profit. — It 
should be the purpose of every fancier or grower 
to breed birds for utility purposes, but this is not 
the case. The best birds out of a flock are kept for 
show purposes, while those a little off in color are 
sold as utility birds. 
In fact, those birds 
that do not come up 
to the show stand- 
ard are p u t aside 
and sold for utility 
stock. This puts 
utility below other 
features of breeding. 
The most important 
quality" is utility and 
a bird that does not 
come up to a high 
standard of utility 
should be discarded, 
and not sold. To 
breed utility birds we must have trap nests and 
keep close accounts with them. When they do 
not come up to the standard of egg production, 
we should discard at once and replace with an- 
other and a better. The utility bird is the found- 
ation stock for the farmer. 

Care of Chickens. — They should have a close 
house, well ventilated, and so arranged that 




GOOD TYPE OF GENERAL PURPOSE FOWL. 



POULTRY FOR THE FARM 221 

plenty of sunshine can get in. The yard should be 
closed on north and west by a board fence and 
should slope to south or east if possible. This 
will keep the chickens in better health and often 
keep them laying all winter. In summer, they 
require plenty of shade and cool water. 



^JH^^^^H^^^^^^I 



BEAUTY AND UTILITY COMBINED. 



Houses for Chickens. — A house for chickens 
should be dry, it should have plenty of sunshine,, 
it should be free from drafts, it should be built 
tight on three sides, and should face south or east. 
The fourth side may be covered with wire and have 
a drop door that could be used during cold weather. 
If anyone of these considerations should be left 
out, chickens will not thrive very well. 

Feeding Chickens. — It will not do to give 
chickens that are enclosed just one kind of food 



222 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



such as wheat or corn. This is not sufficient. 
There must be given some animal food, and on 
the average farm this part of the diet is supphed; 
the chickens eat all kinds of insects and get the 
meat scraps thrown from the table. 

Of course, chickens must have a great deal of 




A MODEL CHICKEN HOUSE. 



green stuff to counterbalance this meat ration. 
This is essential to keep them in health and espe- 
cially to keep them laying. 

Pastures. — The yards that are usually planted 
in small grain for chickens ought to be made large 
enough to give the chickens plenty of green stuff 
for winter diet. The average yards are so small 
that the chickens keep them as clean as a swept 



POULTRY FOR THE FARM 223 

yard. There is nothing better for them tli- n the 
young small grain, but rape, clover or vetch may 
be planted, and will give practically the same 
results. Then a larger pasture will give the 
chickens larger runs, and keep them in better 
health. On the farm this will be overcome by 
letting them run loose part of the time. 



THE ARTIFICIAL HATCHER. 



Raising Young Chicks. — Where we are going 
to raise only two or three hundred chicks in the 
year it is usually better to hatch the eggs with 
hens instead of an incubator, but if we have larger 
numbers it would pay to use the incubator. The 
rule is that if we have the non-setting hens, or 
if we raise a large number of chickens, it pays to 
have an incubator, but otherwise it does not. As 
a substitute for incubators, when we have Leg- 



224 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



horn hens, it might pay to get a few heavy hens 
for setting. 

Results to be Expected. — We shall never get 
great results with poultry till we invest more 
thought and a little more money in it. It is a big 
paying business when it is properly looked after, 
but will never amount to much until we go into 
it with a knowledge and w^ill. Good results will 




BKOODER- — THE INCUBATOR CHICKS NURSERY. 

follow good efforts. No farmer should deny him- 
self the pleasure and profit of raising poultry on 
a small scale, and the matter should not be treated 
lightly like it hasjbeen|treated in the past. All of us 
have been far too indifferent about this important 
branch of Agriculture. 



CHAPTER XXXVI. 
SCHOOL GARDENING. 

School gardening is a subject that has engaged 
the attention of many educators in recent years, 
and is coming to be looked upon as a necessary 
supplement to school work. It is one of the 
shortest and best ways of getting interested in 
and in sympathy with nature. To be able to get 
out to chop, dig, and hoe a little among the plants 
we have planted with our own hands is to quicken 
the latent powers of observation and this is what 
we wish to do in undertaking to develop a school 
garden. 

Every school should have some kind of a gar- 
den, whether for growing ornamental or for other- 
wise useful plants, and often such a garden can 
be made to pay a handsome annual income when 
well operated. "There are about 1,000 school 
gardens in connection with the country schools 
in England", observes Miss Sipe of the Office of 
Experiment Stations, "to inspire and teach the 
boys and girls of rural England the elements of 
Agriculture and Horticulture". 

Selection of Ground for School Garden. — 
It would be far better to have none at all than to 
have a poor school garden, as the people in every 
neighborhood are always wishing something to 
talk about and anj^ kind of failure in the school 
circles will afford much for comment and criti- 
cism. Therefore it is well to select a rich and 
easily cultivated plot for the garden. The aim 
will be to get plants to grow and get them to grow 



226 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 




SCHOOL GARDENING 227 

well. Poor plants make a poor showing, and good 
ones always cause favorable comment. Ordi- 
narily, the spot selected for the school garden 
should be toward the rear of the school house, 
if other conditions favor this. 

Size of Ground for Garden. — This will depend 
on several things, the most important of w^hich 
is the size of the school and the number of grades 
in same. It ought to be arranged so that the plots 
could be given out by grades and each grade have 
a certain crop to grow. This has worked well, 
and shows the possibility of making many crops 
on a small area. We should then assign each 
pupil so much ground. In England each pupil is 
allowed one square rod of soil, and all the plots 
are laid out b^^ the boys as a preliminary lesson. 
The most desirable shape for these individual 
plots is rectangular, letting them be very narrow 
and long. In some schools, narrow streets are run 
through the plots, and each individual plot about 
23/2 f^^t by 8 feet. This part may be left to the 
individual taste of the teacher and pupils. 

What to Plant. — (3ther things being equal, we 
should by all means plant such crops as can be 
gathered while school is in session. If this cannot 
be done, we must make the best of the situation. 
Crops common to the community in which the 
school is located take first place. The purposes of 
the school garden are to teach how^ to improve 
plants already growing in a community as well as 
to introduce new crops, and of course there must 
be no neglect of crops already in existence. Sug- 
gestions are made elsewhere how to arrange for 



228 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

such crops as cannot be gathered during the 
session of the school. If rapidly growing vegeta- 
bles do not take up all the space of the gar- 
den, and it should not, we must not hesitate to 
put farm crops on our ground, such as corn, 
cotton, potatoes, sweet and Irish, and even small 
grains. Much good will result in the habits of 
observation that may be developed. 

Cold Frames and Hot Beds. — In connection 
with ever}' school garden there should be at least 
one cold frame and one hot bed. The cold frame 
may be used for growing cold weather plants 




HOT-BED, SHOWING FRAME AND SASH. 



during winter months. In this we would have 
lettuce, radishes, chard, kale and young cabbage 
plants. Teachers will find it exceedingly inter- 
esting to give lessons from time to time on the 
value of these plants both as food and as table 
decorations, and pupils will appreciate them very 
much. If the frame should be a rather large one, 
say about 6 feet by 30 feet or 40 feet enough lettuce 
can be sold from it to buy a valuable chart or map 
for the school room. 

Hot beds are about the same as cold 



230 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

frames, except they are a little deeper and must 
have a heavy layer of barnyard manure on the 
floor or bottom, which produces the heat for the 
tenderer plants and at the same time a place for 
them to grow in. All our young tomatoes, pep- 
pers, egg-plants, and other tender crops must be 
forced in the hot bed, and made ready for reset- 
ting in early spring as soon as the cool weather is 
over. The boys can make these, by bringing 
spades, shovels, saws, hammers and nails some 
Saturday. The depth should be about two feet 
below the surface level and a good, solid, wooden 
frame made in this. Posts should be about 4 or 
5 feet apart and stout boards nailed on them. Fill 
up on the outside, make one edge of the top about 
a foot or more higher than the other so it will 
shed rain readily. Then fill with earth up almost 
to the top of the outside, so the water will be less 
likely to run in and stand in the frames. Cover 
with light boards or cheap sea island cloth. Ribs 
should be run across the frame every few feet to 
hold the cover up, especially if it be made of cloth. 

Revenue from Young Plants. — It nuist be 
remembered that a school garden is conducted in 
connection with schools primarily for the purpose 
of teaching how to get results from all gardens, 
and to help pupils to think about why certain 
crops are cultivated or fertilized differently from 
others in order to get the best results. In addition 
to this, the teacher can show how home and school 
gardens can be made to become a source of 
revenue. Young tomato plants, peppers and egg- 
plants are quite salable in the spring when every- 



SCHOOL GARDENING 231 

body is fixing to start the home garden, and if 
the school has such plants ready, many thousands 
can be sold and the proceeds go to building up the 
school library. Get the thought and it is easy to 
get the results. Some schools have cleared as 
much as $65.00 in one spring selling young garden 
vegetables for resetting in the home garden. 
Cabbages that are to be thus sold must be put 
out very early after January, if not in the fall. 
Tomatoes, and peppers should be seeded in the 
frame about February 10th or 20th, depending 
on the latitude, altitude and climate. 

Fertilizing Beds or Plots. — When our plants 
are ready to be transferred from frames to plots, 
our land should be well spaded and fertilized. 
The nature and kind of fertilizer should be deter- 
mined by the crop itself, and a table is given in 
the back of this book showing formulas for most 
farm and garden crops. Where possible, a wheel- 
barrow load of some kind of barnyard manure 
should be put on each plot that is allotted to a 
pupil. This will cause the plants to do much better 
and therefore bring success to the work. Only a 
few pounds of fertilizer will be needed for the whole 
garden, and perhaps only about two pounds for 
each plot of 23^2 by 8 feet. A little nitrate of 
soda may be scattered in the bed a little later, or 
in one half of each bed leaving the other half with- 
out it, to show the pupil the results of such an 
experiment. 

Implements to be Used in Cultivating Plots. — 
It has already been stated in this book that every 
school should have a set of garden tools as object 



232 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



lessons. Some day, a small set of such tools will 
be required just as a third reader is required at 
present. Pupils will be required to keep such 
implements on hand. The tools necessary to 
cultivate school gardens are a hoe, rake, spading- 
fork, shovel, pitchfork, and hand-plow. Several 
other implements can be used to advantage, but 
the above is the minimum. The time of culti- 
vation, as well as planting can be worked out just 
as spading and breaking the plots may be. Do 





P^gl^ 


■ V 

- ^H 









EVERY SCHOOL SHOULD HAVE AN ANNUAL FAIR— 
THIS ONE IS IN A SCHOOL IN BRAZIL. 

not be afraid to put out sucli plants as cabbage in 
mid-\\ inter. Tie cold weather dees not hurt 
them and they will grow the more rapidly the 
earlier they are put out. 

If parents object to the purchase of garden 
implements for their children, the teacher can 
arrange to purchase same on credit at some 
grocery store in the nearest by town and let the 
pupil pay for it with lettuce and other salable 



SCHOOL GARDENING 233 

vegetables. This has been done in many places 
and has inspired the young people to do their best 
work. 

Pots and Boxes for Growing Flowers and 
Vegetables. — It is quite easy to give valuable 
lessons in nature study and gardening by the use 
of pots and boxes to grow plants for demonstra- 
tion lessons. Ornamental plants, garden vege- 
tables, and other forms of vegetable life can be 
grown in them and many of them sold or reset 
in home gardens. The school should perhaps 
undertake to supply every garden in the commun- 
ity of the school with a complete variety of garden 
vegetables at the proper time for planting the 
home garden. This can be done without cost, 
and it will win patrons to the work of the school. 
Pupils should be taught how to put out the young 
plants so they can get credit at school for such 
work done at home when the parent informs the 
teacher that it has been successfully done at 
home. Why do not country homes have more 
vegetables, a greater variety of them, and have 
them a longer period of time through the year.^^ 
It is perhaps because it has not occurred to them 
that this is a very easy thing to do, and that it 
costs scarcely anything at all. 

The Duty of Teachers in Such Matters. — If 
a teacher goes into a community to instruct, he 
or she should carry a consciousness of a great 
responsibility into the community, and make it a 
point to leave nothing undone that would tend to 
make life easier, and health surer in the community. 
Pupils must see that school is directly connected 



234 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

with home activities, and they are learning to Hve 
happier in the home if the school is a success. This 
question of supplying young garden plants for 
home planting, will often be the means of welding 
the school and home forever together. The next 
step may be to have patrons come out on Friday 
and discuss methods of gardening and trucking. 
In this way, clubs can be organized among the 
older people that will in every way promote the 
interest of the school and the home. 

Flower Gardens. — Certainly no school should 
be without a flower garden. The arrangement of 
a flower garden can be left largely to the ingenuity 
of the teacher and pupils, but some general sug- 
gestions will perhaps guide us in the initial work. 
In some convenient place near the front or on one 
side or both sides of the school house, have the 
boys measure off the space necessary for the flower 
garden or gardens. There should be at least 
enough space in this plat for some plants for every 
pupil in the school. For roses and shrubbery 
there should be something like 300 square feet of 
land, measuring about 10 feet wide and 30 feet 
long. For bulbs, there should be at least two and 
better four smaller beds, near the entrance to the 
front of the school house. These should measure 
about 3x6 or 4x8 feet, or if in some convenient 
corner, they need not be so formal in shape, but 
may fit in any where the room can be spared; 
only see that they are not shaded too much by 
fences or trees. 

All these beds should be thoroughly spaded in 
late winter before the cold weather is over, and 



SCHOOL GARDENING 



235 



fertilizer and manures thoroughly worked into the 
soil. Sweepings from some cowpen will make the 
very best manure for the bulbs. The bulbs should 
consist of hyacinths, daffodils, jonquils, tulips, 
crocuses, narcissi, and others that may be 




SCHOOL GARDEN PLATS, FROM U. S. FARMERS' BULLETIN NO. 160. 

selected by the pupils themselves. Some cannas, 
colei, and dahlias will help to make out the 
variety. These latter will be more useful near the 
house, or even to bank up against the house, let- 



236 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

ting the cannas be first, the colei next, and last, 
or furthest from the wall, dahlias. 

For the larger bed we may use roses, japoni- 
cas, lilacs, spiraea, arbor vitae, and several other 
kinds of shrubs as may be suggested by pupils or 
teacher, or some good catalogue. Get shrubs 
when possible from the homes of the pupils. This 
will place the school in a very happy relation with 
the homes. Pay back for these plants when the 
young garden plants are ready for replanting later 
in spring. 



CHAPTER XXXVII. 

NATURE STUDY IN THE COMMON 
SCHOOLS. 

Weld nature study and Agriculture and you 
have gone far toward making a happier and 
thriftier population, wherever you may be. The 
ancients learned: ''Nature will soon change all 
things which thou seest, and out of their sub- 
stance will make other things, and again other 
things from the substance of them, in order that 
the world may be ever new". This is a useful and 
a beautiful lesson, and blessed is he who can see 
ever and anon the newness in nature. 

Dr. L. H. Bailey well says: "The nature- 
study idea is bound to have a fundamental influ- 
ence in carrying a vital educational impulse to the 
farmers. The accustomed methods of education 
are less applicable to farmers than to any other 
people, and yet countrymen are nearly half of our 
population. The greatest of the unsolved prob- 
lems of education is how to reach the farmer. 
He must be reached on his own ground. The 
methods and the results must suit his needs. My 
plea is that new educational methods must be 
employed before we can really reach the farming 
communities. I am not insisting that we make 
more farmers, but that we relate the rural school 
to the lives of the people and that we cease to 
unmake farmers." 

Objects of Nature Study. — The greatest object 
of nature study is to get us to thinking about the 
things about us; to relate us, so to speak, to the 



238 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

world in which we hve. We may say that to know 
that the house fly is a carrier of diseases of all 
kinds is to appreciate the importance of warring 
against him. To know that insects and fungi will 
destroy our crops if we do not make war on them 
is to have better crops. To know that it is impos- 
sible for our plants to succeed in the warfare 
against insect life without birds to eat the insects, 
is to protect bird life and thereby save the trees. 
What is all this strife in nature for, anyway .^^ 
Have we ever taken time to stop and think that 
man often stands in his own light by not knowing 
just what step to take next.'^ Nature study will 
help us to move oft" in the right direction and win 
in this great battle. It will prepare us to recog- 
nize and aid our friends, and to make war against 
our enemies in this gigantic struggle. Let's make 
this chapter one of the liveliest in the whole book, 
and see how it will help to make many others seem 
more delightful. 

Methods of Pursuing the Study. — Every school 
should be a special collecting house for all kinds of 
natural objects; such as cocoons, old birds' 
nests, wasp nests, insect galls, peculiar plant 
growths, and all kinds of insects, especially 
injurious species, and the various rocks that are 
exposed about the school house. It would not be 
possible to mention just here the great number of 
items that could be collected in a short season. 
Each grade or class might be held responsible for 
collecting a certain class of objects, and in this 
way very pleasant rivalry could be made to stimu- 
late the several classes to get a fine collection. The 



NATURE ST[TDY IN THE COMMON SCHOOLS 239 

effect of this will be surprising. It will also be 
interesting to see in a short time how many things 
in nature that we ordinarily pass unnoticed prove 
quite interesting. 

Make each class of objects a subject of special 
study for one, two or three days, and then return 
to these in regular order if the necessity should arise. 

We shall never find success trying to teach 
nature study without having a laboratory of liv- 
ing things as well as other objects. The school 
garden, pot plants, and flower beds should con- 
stitute part of our living laboratory, and should 
l)e visited from time to time and made part of our 
regular work, — not merely things about which to 
show curiosity, or to give an excuse to get out of 
an hour's work. 

The Larger Things a Part of Nature Study. — 

With some teachers, only the smaller things about 
the school house and the home are considered 
among the objects for teaching nature study. 
These are good as far as they go, but surely we 
shall not try to limit the child's mind to the near- 
at-hand objects and let the larger things of nature 
go unnoticed. 

A lesson for a rainy day should be composed 
of a short paper by each pupil in the class on clouds. 
What are clouds.^ How are they formed .^^ Are 
there several kinds of clouds.^ Are clouds useful 
as well as beautiful.'^ How is water taken to 
plants in places where they do not have clouds .^^ 
Are clouds always blessings? How about floods .^^ 
Sometimes we say a cloud has a great deal of wind 
in it. Is this literally true.^ What is the cause of 



240 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

the rapid movements in the atmosphere? Get 
the dictionary and find out the difference between 
fog and cloud and steam. 

We shall learn to appreciate and love the 
earth as a unit only as we see it riding through 
space at the rapid rate of more than sixty thousand 
miles an hour, and moving from West to East at 
the rate of twenty -five thousand miles in twenty- 
four hours. 

Some one will volunteer to w rite a lesson on the 
beauty of the stars. We must not forget what 
Emerson said about the stars: "If the stars 
should appear one night in a thousand years, how 
would men believe and adore, and preserve for 
many generations the remembrance of the city of 
God which had been shown ! But every night come 
out these envoys of beauty, and light the universe 
with their admonishing smile." 

The Honey Bee. — If possible we must have a 
hive of bees somewhere in the neighborhood so 
we can visit it. A colony should be exhibited 
under glass near the school in working season, and 
the whole school have access to it daily. A hive 
in perfect balance consists of a single queen, sev- 
eral thousand workers and in certain seasons a 
few hundred drones. The queen will be found on 
the most crowded comb, and will be distinguished 
by her long, slender, and graceful body, with short 
wings going not more than half way the long 
body. The wings of working bees cover the body. 
The drones are broad and heavy and are awkward 
looking bees. 

Bees are not only useful in making honey for 



NATURE STUDY IN THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



241 



our table; they are important agents in the fer- 
tihzation or polhnation of plants. When visiting 
flowers to get the honey, the pollen sticks to them 
and is thereby put on the stigma or female organ 
of that or a neighboring flower. The honey is 
carried to the hive in the crop, and that large 
yellow patch you ma}' happen to see on the hind 
leg of the bee is pollen from the flowers and is to 
go into bee-bread. 

A good queen lays about 2,500 eggs daily, one 




QUEEN. 



in each cell of the comb. This tiny white speck 
hatches out on the fourth day and makes a white 
larva or maggot, which is fed constantly by the 
worker bees till about the ninth or tenth day, when 
it spins a cocoon and forms into a chrysalis. On 
the twenty-first day the chrysalis comes out a 
young bee. Nothing will prove more interesting 
and instructive than to watch a hive of bees 
closely for a season. 

The Toad. — Professor Hodge of Clark Uni- 



242 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

versity has found many interesting facts about 
the common toad that are not generally known. 
He built a small pen in his garden and put in it 
two toads in a pan of water and placed some bits 
of meat and bone near the pan. Of the toads he 
has the following to say: "They spent most of 
the time sitting within reaching distance of the 
bait, and killing the flies attracted by it. I 
watched one toad snap up eighty-six house flies 
in less than ten minutes. 

"One day I gathered a quantity of rose bugs 
in a tin box and began to feed the bugs to a toad. 
At first I did not count, but finding his appetite 
so good I started to count. When I had counted 
over eighty bugs and the toad showed no signs of 
wishing to conclude his meal, I picked him up. 
Previous to my beginning to count he had taken 
anywhere from ten to twenty bugs. I foinid the 
toad equally greedy for rose beetles, canker worms, 
ants, caterpillars, moths, June bugs, weevils, 
snails, and many other insects." 

We also learn from Prof. Hodge that farmers 
in England pay $24.00 per hundred for toads to 
have them placed in gardens and flower beds. 
Toads destroy many cut worms, and in this way 
may be worth in a season as much as $19.88 
apiece to a farmer. 

Have you heard the blinking toad 

Sing his solo by the river 
When April nights are soft and warm, 

And spring is all a-quiver? 

There is no reason why we cannot Ikia e some 
real fun and get some good information by ex- 



NATURE STUDY IN THE COMMON SCHOOLS 243 

perimenting with the toad in the school grounds. A 
small pen will be made of fine mesh wire by the boys, 
about 6 feet square, and a basin of water put in 
this. Some sweet or fresh meat will be placed 
near the pan. At the rest period of school, the 
class will go and observe the habits of Mr. and 
Mrs. Toad. Notes should be taken, especially 
of the number of times they catch food. They eat 
most of their food at the close of the day and in 
the night, so not much will be seen in the middle 
of the day. 

The Bumble-bee. — The bee to which we refer 
is the one that comes around the house in early 
spring to tell you that winter is gone, and stands 
in space without a lighting place, and apparently 
without motion. This is a most intelligent insect. 
We are all to be on the lookout for his nesting 
place. If this happens to be in some convenient 
place, we shall bring it into the school house if 
it can be detached. We must saw^ longitudinally 
through and see just how the bee digs out his 
home. By watching him carefully, we can see 
his methods of carpentry. He goes from directly 
below through the piece of timber selected for his 
site, about three or four inches, and then goes to 
the end of the timber in many cases, and comes 
for about ten or twelve inches directly to the upper 
end of the opening from below. You will not be 
able to tell just where he stopped the vertical or 
horizontal holes, so perfect has the work been and 
so well directed has been the blind instinct. This 
is a wonderful lesson and should not be missed. 

Why Study Nature? — This will suggest that 



244 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

we might have put this information under the 
heading, "Objects of Nature Study," but it is 
different. If we take a wheel from a watch, we 
can learn very little about it, if it is detached 
from the watch. We must study the other wheels 
in the watch, especially those nearest the wheel 
in question, if we ever expect to know this one. 
"Man therefore seeking to know himself, must 
fail utterly, unless he remember that he is only a 
part of the great machine of the universe. He 
must therefore study the other wheels, that is, 
the life-forms about him which are parts of his 
environment and offspring of the same creative 
power of himself." When we consider that we 
are a part of nature, it must appeal to us that it 
is important that we study nature, else we cannot 
study ourselves. 

"I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey work of the stars; 
And the running blackberry Avould adorn the parlors of heaven, 
And the narrowest hinge in my hand puts to scorn all machinery. 
And the cow crunching with depressed head surpasses any statue. 
And a mouse is miracle enough to stagger sextillions of infidels. 
And I could come every afternoon of my life to look at the farmer's girl 
boiling her iron tea-kettle and baking short-cake." 

There is no study that will prove more inter- 
esting than nature study if we will only learn to 
observe the relation of things about us in nature. 
The next chapter will contain some suggestions 
that if followed out will help us to get in sympathy 
with one phase of nature and at the same time 
bring nuich happiness and man;^' resources of life 
to us. 



CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
BIRD LIFE. 

We must stop for a moment and wonder if 
boys are still like they used to be. To acknowledge 
that they are is to have to confess that we are 
slow in our processes of civilization. Only about 
twentj^-five years ago, boys thought that birds 
were made only for boys to shoot at in learning 
how to use a gun, or sling shot, or cross-bow. 
In fact the birds are almost as indispensable in 
the ample field of nature as we boys are. Why is it 
that girls have never enjoyed killing birds like 
boys.^ They seem not to be so brutal as we are. 
We must learn now that it pays to protect and 
enjoy the birds. They were made for a serious 
and noble purpose, and we must try to learn what 
this is. 

Simple Experiments in Bird Study. — First 
of all we must not kill a bird for this study unless 
we have to do so. Let each of the boys select a 
different bird for study. Secure a small note 
book and make an accurate record of his knowledge 
of the bird. This record must be read in school 
about April 1st to 15th. Agree to watch the bird 
at least part of each day for two or three days and 
note exactly how it behaves, what it eats, how it 
flies, where it lights, its song and call note (if it 
happens to be singing in April). This little 
experiment will prove more interesting than we 
had thought. We may be free to use all the 
literature on the subject of birds that we can find. 



246 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



Why Study Birds? — We should study birds 
because they are so completely woven in with 
man's history and happiness. They are the 
natural enemies of injurious insects, and there is 
some doubt if man could grow things upon the 
earth without the aid of birds in the warfare 
against these millions of insect pests. Because 
of their beauty, birds arouse in us that natural 
interest in and love for the animal kingdom to a 
degree that perhaps could be reached in no other 
way. The bird adds 
beauty to the land- 
scape and makes a 
walk into the woods 
more inviting and 
wholesome. We feel 
that we have friends 
on all sides, after we 
begin to know some- 
thing about birds, 
and this makes the 
study a very useful 
as well as a beauti- 
ful study. Nothing 
in the great world 
of nature about us even compares with the 
birds in interest and usefulness and how can we 
longer delay to make a close study of them in their 
relation to human life. Some of the suggestions 
that follow will give us additional reasons why 
we should follow up these lessons on birds. 

Birds and Insects. — It is estimated by ento- 
mologists that insects destroy in the United States 






THE BLUEBIRD ONE OF THE MOST FAMILIAR 

AND USEFUL OF OUR FEATHERED FRIENDS. 



BIRD LIFE 



247 



alone five hundred million dollars' worth of agri- 
cultural products annually, aside from the immense 
cost of spraying outfits and sprays used in the war- 
fare against them. The insectivorous birds in 
Massachusetts destroy 21,000 bushels of insects 
a day during late spring, summer and early fall, 
and are estimated to do half this good during the 
winter eating the scales and insect eggs. At that 

rate, it is hard to 
estimate the enorm- 
ous number of in- 
sects eaten every day 
of the year by the 
great army of birds 
in the United States. 
Try to consider then 
what the birds do 
for us on any sum- 
mer day, when in- 
sects are so abund- 
ant that the hum 
of their united voices 
becomes an almost 
inherent part of the 
atmosphere. But if 
this great army of 
insects is left to do 
its full capacity of 
destruction, the 
question of raising field and garden crops would 
prove too big a problem for man. In other 
words, there is doubt as to whether man could 
prosper on the earth without some aid in the war- 




THE SPARROW HAWK AND SOME SPARROWS 

HE EATS THIS BIRD ALSO DESTROYS 

MANY RATS AND MICE. 



248 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



fare against these small creatures. The birds are 
the most useful of all natural agencies in the war- 
fare against the insects, and should be protected 
in every possible way. 

How Birds Feed Upon Insects. — For a general 
classification of birds according to their methods 
of feeding the following will answer: Those that 
feed in the open air, 
those that feed 
a m o n g trees and 
s h r u b b e r y , those 
that feed upon 
trunks and branches 
of trees, and lastly 
those that feed upon 
the ground. 

To the first class 
belong the swal- 
lows, swifts, night- 
hawks, and whip- 
poor-wills. 

To the second 
class belong the fly- 
catchers, warblers, 
and vireos. 

To the third class 
belong the wood- 
peckers, nuthatches, and creepers. 

To the fourth class belong most of our walking 

birds such as larks, blackbirds, quail and doves. 

There are many useful birds that may not come 

under any one of the above classes, but it was 

not intended to suggest a complete list. The 




A FAMILY OF CARPENTERS. 



BIRD LIFK 249 

above is, however, a good working list. In 
order to make the study interesting, we must 
learn thoroughly at least two birds of each of the 
above fourteen groups. 

Some Birds That Eat Certain Insects. — This 
is the part of the study that we must learn for 
ourselves, but to give the following information 
will not hinder us from getting first hand informa- 
tion along the same line. Certain birds are known 
to prefer certain kinds of insects for their meat 
supply while others have an entirely different 
menu. This difference no doubt is due largely 
to the question of supply and demand. Birds 
will naturally cultivate a taste for certain kinds of 
food, if other supplies happen to run short. The 
following suggestions have been given out by a 
number of authorities on economic ornithology 
and combined by Mr. E. H. Furbush, Ornitholo- 
gist to the State Board of Agriculture of Massa- 
chusetts : 

The chickadee holds in check the tent cater- 
pillar by eating the eggs. 

The white l)reasted nuthatch feeds largely 
on scale insects and their eggs. 

The wood peewee feeds on moths, beetles, 
flies, gnats, mosquitoes and other small flying 
insects. 

Robins, and catbirds eat the famous cecropia 
moth, one of the worst enemies of groves and 
orchards. 

The cuckoo is famous for its love of the hairy 
caterpillar. 

The Mexican cotton boll weevil is eaten bv at 



250 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

least thirty-eight species of l)irds, the most active 
among these being the oriole, nighthawk, martin, 
bank swallow, barn swallow, rough wing swallow, 
and cliff swallow. 

This could be multiplied indefinitely, but to say 
too much about it would possibly keep us from 
seeing more of what birds eat. We must actually 
get out in the field and see just what birds do eat. 
Flagg says that each species of bird performs cer- 
tain services in the economy of nature, which 
cannot be so well accomplished by any other 
species. It is therefore important that we protect 
all the birds in order that we do not make a fatal 
error by destroying some species. 

Bird Migration. — One of the most interesting 
things about bird life is migration, or passing from 
zone to zone as the seasons roll by. In early 
spring they wend their way northward day by day 
till some of them reach the north shore of Labrador. 
In the autumn southward they come in great 
bands by day and by night. How happy is one 
who knows when to look for these passing bands 
of birds and can be out and see them, and name 
them. What is the cause of this great movement 
of birds from one section of the globe to another .^^ 
An answer to this would be almost impossible, 
but many have suggested some reasons why birds 
migrate. Some claim that it is a search for a 
supply of food on which to rear the young, while 
others think it is only this ''homing instinct" to 
get back to the place of their birth before rearing 
the young. Many factors no doubt play some part 
in causing birds to migrate. Shall we let them go 



BIRD LIFE 



251 



In^ season after season without getting a glimpse of 
them? A table of migrations should be posted in 
every school in the United States so our happy 
young people could have some basis for a study of 
bird migration. A table will be found in Chap- 
man's Handbook of Birds of Eastern North 

America, and some 
good pupil may copy 
it off for part of his 
or her monthly ex- 
amination. 

Bird Song. — Have 

you really ever stood 
and listened to the 
song of a wood 
thrush? Do so, and 
then try to analyze 
this heaven-sent 
melod}^. You will 
never thereafter es- 
cape the calming in- 
fluences of bird 
music. It is so beau- 
tiful and free and 

MOCKING BIRD, HXJMMING BIRD AND JOREE. wholCSOUie that We 

should never miss it 
when it comes into our community. Some birds 
sing almost all the year while the great majority 
of the species sing only about nesting time. Bird 
students seem to agree that the song instinct of 
birds is very closely associated with their mating, 
the time of the year that they seem most happy. 
The song proper must be differentiated from the 




252 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

call notes of birds. ''The call notes," observes ]\Ir. 
Frank Chapman, "are the birds' daily language, 
while the true songs are only outbursts of emotion." 
It is quite important therefore that we know the 
call notes as well as the songs in order to be on 
good terms w4th the birds. 

"The beauty of birds, the music of their calls, 
the majesty of their soaring flight, the mystery of 
their migrations, have ever been subjects of 
absorbing interest to poets, artists, and nature 
lovers everywhere. Prominent among the undy- 
ing memories of men are mental pictures of the 
birds of childhood, their coming in the spring, 
their nesting, and their chosen haunts. Many an 
exiled emigrant longs in vain to hear again the 
out-pouring melody of the sky-lark as it soars 
above the fields of England." 

TO OUR MOCKING BIRD. 

Trillets of humor, shrewdest whistle-wit. 

Contralto cadence of grave desire, 

Such as from off the passionate Indian pyre 

Drift down through sandal-odored flowers that split 

About the slim young widow who doth sit 

And sing above — midnights of tone entire — 

Tissues of moonlight shot with songs of fire; 

Bright drops of tune, from oceans infinite 

Of melody, sipped off the thin-edged wave 

And trickling down the beak — discourses brave 

Of serious matter that no man may guess — 

Good-fellow greetings, cries of light distress — 

All these but now within the house we heard: 

O death, wast thou too deaf to hear the bird? 

Sidney Lanier. 



CHAPTER XXXIX. 



CO-OPERATION IN AGRICULTURAL 
WORK. 

After many years of plannino; and stndy on 
the subject of extension work in all Agriculture, 
most authorities seem to come to the same con- 
clusion, that co-operative work and demonstra- 
tion work, together with the formation of clubs, 
must eventually be the solution of the problem 
of farm improvement. Among the various clubs 





iiil^iiji illi li Hi,, 




EVERY FUTURE FARMER SHOULD ASPIRE TO A COLLEGE EDUCATION. 

formed to promote this kind of work are the Boj^s' 
and Girls' Clubs, Farmers' Co-operative Demon- 
stration Work, College Extension Work, and Co- 
operative Live Stock Associations, as well as 
many other organizations of a similar nature. 
This movement is a new movement, but is sure 
to revolutionize Agriculture within the next few 



254 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

years. We have long since learned that very few 
people can get the benefits of a college education, 
and in order for a college to serve the whole 
people it must make every effort to reach them 
through the medium of organized clubs. The 
Department of Agriculture has felt that it can 
render no greater service than to carry the news 
and methods of scientific Agriculture to the farm- 
ing communities, and what it has accomplished in 
this line under the late Dr. Knapp fully justifies 
all efforts. 

Boys' Corn Clubs. — Every school should aid 
in the organization of a boys' corn club. This is 
easily done and may be the means of making a 
far better school. In order to do so, get in cor- 
respondence with your State agent usually located 
at your State College of Agriculture. He will 
forward blanks for memberships in these organiza- 
tions, and co-operate with teachers in perfecting 
the organizations. The Department of Agricul- 
ture gives the following purposes for organizing 
boys' corn clubs: 

(1) To afford the rural teacher a simple and easy method of teaching 
practical agriculture in the school in the way it must be acquired to be of 
any real service, i. e., mainly by actual work upon the farm. 

(2) To prove that there is more in the soil than the farmer has ever 
gotten out of it; to inspire boys with a love of the land by showing them 
how they can get wealth out of it by tilling it in a better way and thus be 
helpful to the family and the neighborhood. 

(3) To give the boys a definite, worthy purpose and to stimulate a 
friendly rivalry among them. 

The following rules may be adopted by a club, 
with such modifications and additions as may be 
found necessary: 



CO-OPERATION IN AGRICULTURAL WORK 



255 




256 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

(1) Boys joining clubs and entering contests must be between 10 and IS 
years of age on January 1 of any given year. 

(2) No boy shall contest for a prize unless he becomes a member of a 
club. 

(3) The members of the clubs must agree to study tlie instructions of 
the Farmers" Co-operative Demonstration Work. 

(4) Each boy must plan his own crop and do his own work. A small 
boy may hire help for heavy plowing in preparing the soil. 

(5) Exhibits must be delivered to the county superintendent of educa- 
tion on or before November 1. 

(6) The land and corn must be carefully measured in the presence of 
at least two disinterested witnesses, who shall attest the certificate of the 
boy. 

(7) The entire crop of corn should be weighed when it is in a dry con- 
dition. Two 100-pound lots should be weighed from different parts of the 
total. Weigh the shelled corn from these two lots in order to find the aver- 
age percentage of shelled corn. Multiply the total weiglit by this per- 
centage and divide by 56 in order to get the total number of bushels. In 
cases of large yields the moisture content should be ascertained. Doubt- 
less the agricultural colleges will be glad to make such tests. If not, apply 
to the Demonstration Bureau and it will be arranged with the proper 
office of the Department of Agriculture. 

(8) In awarding pi'izes the following basis shall be used: 

Per cent 

a. Greatest yield per acre 30 

b. Best exhibit of 10 ears 20 

c. Best written account showing history of crop 20 

d. Best showing of profit on investment based on the commercial price 

of corn 30 

It is a good plan to have (i and h judged by a 
committee of farm experts and c and d l)y a com- 
mittee of school officers and teachers. Their 
combined judgment can be made very helpful. 

Girls' Canning Clubs. — In some States the 
girls' chib work is in charge of a special expert 
located at the State College of Agriculture, where 
the advantages of co-operative publications in 
the form of l)ulletins and the ready advice of 
specialists are always available. This j^roves an 
ideal arrangement from the standpoint of admin- 
istration work. This work comes under the State 
Agent for Farmers' Co-operative Demonstration 



CO-OPERATION IN AGRICULTURAL WORK 



257 



Work llirougli whose office is usually field a State 
contest for prizes. The purposes of the girls' 
clubs have also been outlined hy the Department 
of Agriculture as follow^s: 

(1) To encourage rural families to provide purer and better food at a 
lower cost, and utilize the surplus ancl otherwise waste products of the 
orchard and garden, and make the poultry yard an effective part of the 
farm economy. 

(2) To stimulate interest and wholesome co-operation among mem- 
bers of the familv in the home. 




C.\N YOUR PE.\CHES AND H.AVE KRUIl UlEl IHt YE.AR 'ROUND. 

(3) To provide some means by which girls may earn money at home, 
and, at the same time, get the education and viewpoint necessary for the 
ideal farm life. 

(4) To open the way for practical demonstrations in home economics. 

(5) To furnish earnest teachers a plan for aiding their pupils and 
helping their communities. 

The county is tlie proper unit for organization 
of clubs. This unit may be subdivided into dis- 



258 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

tricts according to centers of population and 
natural barriers, so as to place a club within the 
reach of every girl in the county, if practicable. 

The plan of this work should usually be pre- 
sented to the county teachers' association by the 
proper authorities. A leader may be selected 
from among the teachers with the assurance of 
co-operation from local and district agents and 
county agents of the Farmers' Co-operative 
Demonstration Work. These agents are paid to 
promote the welfare of Agriculture in the county, 
and will have instructions from the State Agent 
to help the local clubs in their organization work. 

(1) Girls joining the clubs must be between ten and eighteen years of 
age. The age for any year will be fixed by the age of the girl on January 
first of that year. Special classes may be organized for older girls. 

(2) No girl shall be eligible to receive a prize unless she becomes a 
member of the club and plants a garden containing one-tenth of an acre. 

(3) The members of the clubs must agree to study the instructions of 
the United States Department of Agriculture, and such other instructions 
as may be sent them from co-operating sources. 

(4) Each girl must plan her own crop and do her own work. It will 
be permissible to hire heavy work done, but the time must be charged. 

(5) In estimating profits the following uniform prices must be used: 
One dollar for rent of land; ten cents for each hour worked; two dollars 
a ton for stable manure; and actual cbst for commercial fertilizer and other 
things purchased or furnished. 

(6) The garden and products must be carefully measured and two 
disinterested witnesses must attest the report submitted at the close of the 
season. 

PRIZES AND AWARDS. 

The award of prizes and honors shall be based 
on the fresh and canned products of the garden 
according to the following schedule: 

1 . Quality 20 per cent 

2. Quantity — pounds vegetables harvested and used 20 per cent 

3. Variety of canned product 20 per cent 

4. Profit 20 per cent 

5. Written history, account or composition — "How I made 

my crop." 20 per cent 



CO-OPERATION IN AGRICULTURAL WORK 259 

Poultry Clubs. — It is a well-known fact that 
the raising of chickens can he made a pleasant 
and profitable business, and that fresh eggs always 
have a ready marketable value. The object of 
forming poultry clubs is to emphasize the value 
and importance of this much neglected industry, 
and to co-operate in an effort to secure for market 
a uniformly excellent product. Usually some one 
connected with the State College of Agriculture 
or with the Department of Agriculture in Wash- 
ington will help with poultry club organizations, 
and every girl in a community should belong to 
such a club even if she already belongs to a can- 
ning club or any other club. When such clubs 
are organized, regular meetings should be held 
from time to time and the problems of the industry 
discussed. 

It will be well to have a president, one or more 
vice-presidents, and a secretary. A simple con- 
stitution and by-laws should be adopted. It will 
be found profitable to subdivide the county organ- 
ization by townships, schools, or school districts, 
and have local meetings at school houses or at 
different girls' homes occasionally. Each club 
should adopt the following general regulations: 

1. Girls joining the club must be between 10 and 18 years of age 
on January 1 of any given year. Special classes may be organized for 
older girls. 

2. No girl sHall be eligible to receive a prize unless she becomes a 
member of the club, and sets at least one sitting of 15 eggs. 

3. Each member of the club must agree to study the instructions 
of the United States Department of Agriculture. 

4. Each girl must plan to do her own work and keep strict accovmt 
of all expenses, such as feed, labor (for which 10 cents an hour should be 
charged), sale of stock, etc. 



260 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

SUGGESTIONS TO MEMBERS. 

To rid the poultry house of mites, spray the pen, 
the roosts, and the dropping boards with kerosene 
or crude petroleum at least once a week from the 
time warm weather sets in in the spring until cold 
weather comes in the fall. Those having lime and 
sulphur compound could use it to good advantage 
for destroying lice and mites in the poultry house. 

Market all cockerels, except those intended for 
breeding purposes, as soon as they attain broiler 
size, for they will pay a larger profit at that time 
than if held until fall when the market becomes 
overcrowded. 

It is urged that club members strictly adhere 
to the following rules in handling their poultry 
and eggs: 

L Keep the nests clean, provide one nest for every four hens. 

2. Gather the eggs twice daily. 

3. Keep the eggs in a cool, dry room or cellar. 

4. Market the eggs at least twice a week. 

5. Sell, kill, or confine all male birds as soon as the hatching season 
is over. 

Berkshire Clubs. — This may include all breeds 
of hogs or the name may be changed to suit the 
breed. We merely suggest here that such clubs 
ought to be organized in every community and the 
price of meat reduced in this way. It would also 
be the means of elevating the ideals of young 
people as regards diversification of crops, if they be 
permitted to sell a few thoroughbred pigs and use 
the money to improve the remaining stock. The 
same general rules should apply to these clubs as 
those above, in reference to age, membership and 
other like things. It would be consistent for boys 



( ()-OPERATION IN AGRICULTURAL WORK 



261 




262 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

to organize hog clubs, though girls should not be 
barred from such clubs. 

General Purpose of Club Work. — A happy 
rivalry always stimulates us to great efforts to 
accomplish something, and clubs have done much 
to interest boys and girls in the improvement of 
farm crops and farm animals. It should interest 
them as much in the improvement of school work 
and school life, and school improvement clubs 
should be organized. Teachers should always see 
to it that a school improvement club is organized 
in their own schools. Boys and girls will do much 
toward keeping a school together and advancing 
its causes, if they once get interested. So will 
they aid in improving the home, if they are encour- 
aged in home improvement and crop improvement. 
If they take no interest in such matters, it is 
because they have not been trained to do so, 
and therefore ha^'e been neglected. Give them 
some encouragement, and great results may be 
expected. 



CO-OPERATION IN AGRICULTURAL WORK 



263 



SOME SCORE 
CONTESTS: 



CARDS FOR DIFFERENT 



SCORE CARD FOR THE COTTON PLANT. 



THE COTTON PLANT. 



SCORE 



PLANT, Vigorous, Stocky, 2.5 Points: 

Size, medium to large as influenced by soil, location, 
season and variety 

Form, symmetrical, spreading, conical, height and spread 
according to soil, etc 

Stalk, minimum amount of wood in proportion to fruit. . . . 

Branches, springing from base, strong, vigorous, in pairs, 
short- jointed, inclined upward 

Head, well branched and filled, fruited uniformly 

FRUITING, 24 Points: 

Bolls, large, abundant, uniformly developed, plump, 
sound, firm, well-rounded, apex obtuse, singly or in 
clusters 

Nlhviber of bolls, according to variety, soil and season. . . . 

Bolls per plant, thin uplands. 10-20; fertile uplands, 
20-2."); "bottoms," .50-100; special selections. 100-500. . . . 

Bolls per pound. of seed cotton, large, 10-60; medium, 
20-7.5; small, 80-110 

Character of bolls, number of locks 4 to 7; kind of 
sepals: retention of cotton 

Opening of bolls, uniform including top crop, classify as 

good, medium, poor 

YIELD — Standard One Bale Per Acre, .30 Points: 

Seed cotton, estimated by average plant, distance of 
planting, per cent, of stand, plants per acre; thin up- 
lands, 10.000; fertile uplands, 6, .500; "bottoms", 4,.500; 
distance of plants 3iixl}4 ft., 4i'2xl,'-2 ft., 4,^^x2 ft., re- 
spectively 

Per cent, lint, not less than 30, standard 40 

Seeds, 30-.50 per boll, large, plump, easily delinted, color, 
according to variety; germination not less than 95 per 

cent 

QUALITY and Character of Lint, 21 Points: 

Strength, tensile strain good, even throughout length. . . . 

Length, long, according to local standard, upland 7-8 to 1 
inch; intermediate Hi to 1 5-16 inches; long staple l}-'2 to 
2 inches 

Fineness, fibers soft, silky and pliable, responsive to touch 

Uniformity, all fibers of equal length, strength, fineness. . 
Purity, color dead white; fiber free from stain, dirt and 
trash 



Total 100 



No. of Plant Source 

Type 

Remarks on Plant 

Date 19 ... . Name of Student . 



264 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



DIRECTIONS FOR JUDGING COTTON. 

1 — The Plant. 
On the score card the ideal plant is given a rating of 25 points. 



For 



plants departing only slightly from the variety standard as to size, a cut 
of 1 to 1}^ points should be made. If this departure is very marked a cut 
of 3 points may be made. 

For excessive long joints and poorly placed and developed branches 
cut a maximum of 2 to 5. For slight defects in these respects cut from 2J^ 
to 3 points. 

For a well-opened or vase-shaped head admitting light and air in abund- 
ance allow 5 points as the perfect score. 

SCORE CARD FOR CORN. 

Class Variety 

STANDARD. 

Stalks per Acre Ears per Stalk 

Weight of Ears Lbs. Yield per Acre Bus. 

I Length inches. \ Grain 

Ear < ' Color - 

I Circumference inches. / Cob 



Uniformity: 

a. Uniformity of exhibit /_ 

b. Trueness to type f _ 

Shape of ear — cylindrical .' 

Weight — according to standard 

Length — according to standard 

Circumference — according to standard 

Market condition and quality — sound and bright . . 

Color — No discolored grains 

Tips — Covered over end 

Butts — Filled out, rows straight 

Space between rows — very little 

Uniformity and shape of kernels 

Percent, of grain, estimated Found . 



10 
10 
10 
5 
5 
20 



Total 100 



Name of Student 

Date 19,... 

Uniformity. — It is important that the ears of an exhibit shall be 
uniform in length, circumference, color, shape of kernel and shape of ear. 
The exhibit should be true to type, that is, correspond closely to the ac- 
cepted standard for the variety. 

Sh.\pe of E.\r. — Other conditions equal, the cylindrical form of ears 
yields the highest percentage of grain to cob. Large, expanded butts and 
ears decidedly tapering must be discarded. 

Length AND Circumference. — .Vbnormally long or large ears are 
objectionable. The medium, synnnetrical and compact ear is preferred 
to the mammoth kind. 



CO-OPERATION IN AGRICULTURAL WORK 



265 



Market Condition and Quality. — The grain should be sound and 
bright. Discolored germs should be severely discounted since corn in 
this condition will not germinate. Chatfy grains usually indicate immaturity 
or curtailed development. 

HOG AND POULTRY CONTEST. 

To get the boys and girls interested in live stock, we would suggest 
to the county school commissioners that they offer liberal prizes for a con- 
test of this kind to be held at the same time as the Corn Contest. The 
chief reason for selecting these two classes of live stock is that the l>oys and 
girls can usually afford to invest the small amount of capital necessary 
to get a start in this line, and it is also true that the hogs and ])t)ultry will 
give larger returns for money invested than any other class of live stock. 

SCORE CARD. 



BACON HOGS. 


4J 

'S 8 


c 
2 8 


■a 

<U (U 

^ 8 


GENERAL APPEARANCE, 36: 

Weight, 170 to 200 lbs., largely the result of thick covering 
of firm flesh 


6 
10 

10 

10 

G 












Quality, hair fine, skin thin; bone fine; firm, even covering 
of flesh without any soft bunches of fat or wrinkles 






Condition, deep, uniform covering of flesh, especially in re- 
gions of valuable cuts 






HEAD AND NECK, 0: 

Snout, fine 






Eyes, full, mild, bright 






F.A.CE, slim 












Jowl, light, trim • • 












FORE SHOULDERS, 10: 

Shoulders, free from roughness, smooth, compact and 






Bre.\st, moderately wide, full 


2 






Legs, straight, short, strong; bone clean; pasterns upright. 


2 

4 
8 

10 
2 

10 

2 
2 

8 
2 






BODY, 34: 

Chest, deep, full girth 


1 


Back, medium and uniform in width, smooth, slightly 
arched 






Sides, long, smooth, level from beginning of shoulders to 
end of hind quarters. The side at all points should touch 
a straight edge running from fore to hind quarter 






Ribs, deep 






Belly, trim, firm, thick without any flabbiness or shrink- 
age at flank 






HIND QUARTERS, 14: 

Hips, smooth, wide; proportionate to rest of body 










Gammon, firm, rounded, tapering, fleshed deep and low 






Legs, straight, short, strong; feet medium size; bone clean; 
pasterns upright 












Total 


100 







266 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



SCORE CARD. 



LARD HOGS. 



Dh M to C/3 



GENERAL APPEARANCE, 36: 

Weight, score according to age 

Form, deep, broad, low, long, symmetrical, compact, 
standing squarely on legs 

Quality, hair silky; skin fine; bone fine; flesh smooth, mel- 
low, and free from lumps or wrinkles 

Condition, deep, even covering of flesh, especially in re- 
gions of valuable cuts 

HEAD AND NECK, 6: 

Snout, medium length, not coarse 

Eyes, full, mild, bright 

Face, short, cheeks full 

Ears, fine, medium size, soft 

Jowl, strong, neat, broad 

Neck, thick, medium length 

FORE QUARTERS, 10: 

Shoulders, broad, deep, full, compact on top 

Breast, advanced, wide 

Legs, straight, short, strong; bone clean; pasterns upright; 

feet medium size 

BODY, 30: 

Chest, deep, broad, large girth 

Sides, deep, lengthy, full; ribs close and well sprung. . . . 

Back, broad, straight, thickly and evenly fleshed 

Loin, wide, thick, straight 

Belly, straight, even 

HIND QUARTERS, 18: 

Hips, wide apart, smooth 

Rump, long, wide, evenly fleshed, straight 

Ham, heavily fleshed, plump, full, deep wide 

Thighs, fleshed close to hocks 

Legs, straight, short, strong; bone clean; pasterns upright; 
feet medium size 

Total 



RULES. 

The contestant, at the time of entering his pig at the county fair, 
must file with the county school commissioner the following points : 

Age of pig. 

Breed of pig 

Estimated weight 

Kind, quantity, and cost of feeding per month 

Kind, quantity, and cost of pasture per month 

Cost of raising pig 

Market value of pig 

Profit 

Signed 

In awarding the premiums, the judges should consider the profit as 
well as score of the pig entered. 



CO-OPERATION IN AGRICULTURAL WORK 267 



POULTRY CONTEST. 

As the value of poultry and eggs in the United States exceeds the value 
of either corn or cotton, it is deemed desirable to inaugurate a contest in 
poultry raising, for boys and girls of Georgia. The exhibit should take 
place in connection with the exhibit of the corn and cotton. 

As there are very few farms in Georgia that maintain a pure breed 
of any kind of fowls, it is thought best to base the contest on the exhibi- 
tion of any three fowls raised by the exhibitor; a cockerel and two pullets, 
also individual cockerel and pullet. This insures the exhibition of fowls 
raised the present season. 

Although it may be desirable to have only pure bred fowls exhibited, 
any single fowl, or trio of fowls should be admitted that possess points of 
merit. 

The points to be considered in judging the exhibits should be based 
on the usefulness of the fowl from the farmer's standpoint, rather than on 
the fancy breeds. 

The fowls should be judged on the following points: (1) As to whether 
they belong (a) to the distinctly egg breeds represented by the Leghorns, 
Minorcas, and Games; (b) to the meat breeds represented by the Langshans, 
Brahmas, and Cochins, or (c) to the general purpose class represented by 
Plymouth Rocks, Wyandottes, Indian Games, and Orpingtons. 

2. As to their ability to care for themselves on the farm. 

3. General appearance. 

4. Maturity at the time of exhibit. 

5. Weight. 

6. Plumage. 

A record should be filed with the exhibit covering the following points: 

1. Number eggs set. 

2. Date of hatching. 

3. Number hatched. 

4. Food used. 

5. In case of mixed or cross breeds, from what breeds descended? 

6. Age of fowl. 

The fowls should be from a single brood, but in the event they are 
selected from the entire flock, the record should be filled out for each fowl. 
Prizes should be given as follows: 



1. 

2 
3! 


Any Breed. 

Best single cockerel. 
Best single pullet. 
Best trio. 


L 
2. 
3. 


Egg Producing Breeds. 

Best single cockerel. 
Best single pullet. 
Best trio. 


L 
2. 
3. 


Meat Producing Breeds. 

Best single cockerel. 
Best single pullet. 
Best trio. 



268 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

All Purpose Fowls. 

1. Best single cockerel. 

2. Best single pullet. 

3. Best trio. 

In the outlining of this chapter. State College 
and Department of Agriculture bulletins have been 
freely used and quoted, and much of the material 
is so excellent that it might almost be said to be 
standardized. For such contests, our national. 
State, and local authorities have sought the best 
instruction and advice, and these authorities 
always welcome co-operation among all who are 
doing work along similar lines. 

For literature on any subjects treated, write to 
your State College of Agriculture, or the United 
States Department of Agriculture, at Washington, 
and they will gladly send you matter on almost any 
desired line of thought that pertains to Agriculture. 



CHAPTER XL. 
THE FARMER'S OPPORTUNITY. 

The Open Country. — How exhilarating it is 
for a farmer to he ahle to see a heautifiil sunrise 
and sunset without the dimming influence of city 
smoke, or to be able to mingle with the })eauties of 
the great world at his own door. How thankful 
he should be to see the stars, the envoys of beauty 
that come out in renewed glory every night 
undimmed by the dusty atmosphere of city streets! 
The influence of the open country is wholesome 
and has always fostered the best citizenship when 
accompanied with the refining influences of litera- 
ture, art, and a high order of religion. There is 
more pure oxygen in a country home than in any 
other home in the world and this makes for a 
wholesome body. A wholesome body is worth all 
and should grow the best mind, other things being 
equal. 

Health on the Farm. — As has just been said, 
the country is the place of good health. The one 
hindrance to this is the question of a lack of 
proper sanitation. Our farmers as a class of people 
do not take the proper precautions against con- 
tagious diseases, and the death rate is too high. 
A farmer ordinarily is careless about his well, his 
stables and his privies. These three necessities 
should be studied and cared for above everything 
else. The most fevers to which we are subjected 
and with which we die, are gotten by drinking 
impure water, or eaten with our food on which 
houseflies have been crawling, or come through 



270 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

mosquitoes. Our wells should therefore be most 
carefully drained, so that no surface water can 
possibly get in them and should be cleaned at 
least every three months. Our stable should be 
cleaned out at least every month, — every week 
would be better — in order to prevent houseflies 
from breeding in them. When the stables are 
cleaned, the manures should have lime put with 
them which prevents the flies from hatching. No 
puddles of water should be left about the farm for 
mosquitoes to hatch in. Small puddles in our 
small brooks and branches are the source of most 
of the mosquito life on the farm. This can be 
remedied very easily if the farmer will only keep 
watch and not let the puddles form. 

Farm Conveniences. — It may be presumed that 
farmers can no longer make the claim that poverty 
keeps them from having conveniences about the 
home. It is these conveniences and the demand for 
them, or should I not say the lack of a demand 
for them, that differentiates the farmer from his 
city neighbors. It is easy to have waterworks, 
a sewer system and furnace heating in every coun- 
try home. Personally I would prefer a home near- 
by some small stream of water so the water would 
afford power for a small electric dynamo, so I 
could have electric lights. This is no far off dream 
nor is it impossible under such conditions to have 
such lights. Acetylene gas may be used both 
for lighting and cooking with great satisfaction. 
We must have on the farm well screened houses, 
convenient and comfortable kitchens, and every- 
thing to help lessen the work of the housekeeper. 



THE FARMERS OPPORTUNITY 



271 



We must have also a small cannery for putting uj) 
the winter supply of foods. We must have also 
gardens from which something may be gotten to 
eat every day in the year. There is no use in 
letting our gardens be called spr^ing gardens any 
longer. We can get as much from the garden in 
autumn and winter as we can in spring and sum- 
mer if we only try. Study from the almanac the 




SUCH ROADS MAKE MARKETING EXPENSIVE. 

kinds of vegetables that will stand the winter 
weather and then see that these are put out in the 
proper time to do best. 

Farm Dairying. — This subject will be discussed 
from the standpoint of the dairy run for individual 
use rather than the one used as a commercial 



272 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

dairy. Every farmer either has or should have a 
small dairy to supply his table with milk and its 
products. Milk is undoubtedly the best medium 
for the growth of all kinds of disease germs and if 
not carefully handled is likely to be the one article 
of food that spreads fever to all members of the 
family. It should be handled when possible in a 
house separated by some distance from the dwell- 
ing house, such as a spring house, and should be 




GOOD ROADS SAVE TIME AND HORSE FLESH. 

arranged so that it would stay cool in summer and 
not allowed to freeze in winter. A home dairy 
should also be sterilized very often, and the milk 
vessels scalded at least once a day. It is easier 
to do this than it is to have to surrender life on 
account of not doing it. 

The Farmer as a Citizen. — It may be said with 
safety that very few classes of citizens are students 



THE FARMERS OPPORTUNITY 273 

of government and the needs of a people. There 
are some classes that make a better study of the 
question of government than farmers, but no 
one has a better opportunity to become an ideal 
citizen than the farmer. To do this he must not 
be deceived into all kinds of prejudices. He must 
know the truth about government and then study 
the needed changes. To know the truth all of us 
must study papers and books. We must know all 
our national officers, their duties and their salaries. 
We must know the term of office of all govern- 
ment officials and State officials, as well as the 
method of election. Name those who are elected 
by the people and those who are not. As to those 
who are not, we must learn how they are elected. 
These are subjects that will be learned in our 
histories and civics, but are worth enumerating 
here. The information suggested above should be 
posted in every school room in the United States, 
and pupils of the higher grades should be required 
with the help of the teacher to collect and post 
such information. When the farmer knows these 
things, he will be a better citizen and can vote 
far more intelligently and feel that he is getting 
to exercise his privileges as a citizen to the best 
advantage. 

Flower Yards and Lawns. — The farmer nuist 
in future give more attention to beautifying his 
home. This will prove to be one of the most 
pleasant things about the home. To see the yard 
gradually grow from a clean-swept barren spot 
into a beautiful grass covered lawn bedecked here 
and yonder with shrubbery and flowers is indeed a 



274 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



pleasure, and will be the subject of conversation 
among our neighbors. The average country 
home is not a place of beauty, but can easily be 
made so, if we will spend our rest daj^s for one 
year in a careful development of our farm environ- 
ment. These things not only make the home more 





■UK' 



"-«■> 



'Mt^. 



'*"^*«H^. 



"^^t^. 



OUR COUNTRY HOMES MIGHT BE AS TASTEFUL AS THIS ONE. 

beautiful, but in fact make us and all who come in 
contact with these improvements more beautiful. 
It is therefore the best method of developing 
culture among our young people on the farm. 



THE FARMERS OPPORTUNITY 275 

GENERAL REFERENCES. 

Bailey: "Principles of Agriculture" — Macmillan & Co. 

"Practical Farming and Gardening" — Rand McNally & Co. 

"Ten Acres Enough" — The Cultivator Pxiblishing Co. 

Newman: "The Southern Gardener's Practical Manual" — ('. L. 

Newman. 
King: "The Soil" — Macmillan & Co. 

Roberts: "The Fertility of the Land" — Macmillan & Co. 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 257: "Soil Fertility." 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 245: "The Renovation of Wornout Soils." 
Johnson: "How Crops Feed" — Orange Judd Co. 
Bailey: "The Horticulturist's Rule Book" — Macmillan & Co. 
Voorhees: "Fertilizers" — Macmillan & Co. 
Harris: "Talks on Manure" — Orange Judd Co. 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 192: "Barnyard Manure." 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 22: "The Feeding of Farm Animals. " 
"David Dickson's System of Farming" — Cultivator Publishing Co. 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 151: "Dairying in the South." 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 41: "Fowls, Care and Feeding." 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 129: "Sweet Potatoes." 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 62: "Marketing Farm Produce." 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 95: "Good Roads for Farmers." 
U. S. Farmers" Bulletin No. 218: "The School Garden." 
l^. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 154: "The Home Fruit Garden." 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 156: "The Home Vineyard." 
U. S. Farmers' Bulletin No. 242: "An Example of Model Farming." 

Farmers' bulletins are sent free upon application to the Seerctary 
of Agriculture or to Congressmen. Many of them are very valuable and 
pupils should learn to consult them. The teacher should also make use 
of the bulletins of the State experiment station which can be had upon 
request. 

Addresses of Southern Agricultural Experiment Stations With 

Names of Directors, from Whom Free Bulletins May be Secured. 
Alabama — Auburn; J. F. Duggar. 
Arkansas — Fayetteville; C. F. Adams. 
Florida — Gainesville; P. H. Rolfs. 
Georgia — Experiment; R. J. H. DeLoach. 
Kentucky — Lexington; J. H. Kastle. 
Louisiana — Baton Rouge; W. R. Dodson. 
Mississippi — Agricultural College; E. R. Lloyd. 
North Carolina — Raleigh; B. W. Kilgore. 
Oklahoma — Stillwater; J. A. Wilson. 
South Carolina — Clemson College; J. N. Harper. 
Tennessee — Knoxville; H. A. Morgan. 
Texas — College Station; B. Youngblood. 
Virginia — Blacksburg; S. W. Fletcher, 



276 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



USEFUL TABLES. 



We add a number of tables, compiled from various sources. They 
contain much useful information, and should be memorized b\' the student 
or farmer. 

COMPOSITION OF MANURES. 

Table L 
Nitrogenous Manures. 





Pounds Per Hundreo. 


ARTICLE 


Nitrogen 


Phosphoric 
Acid 


Potash 




15M to 16 
19 to 201^2 
12 to 14 
in toll 
11 to 12! 2 
5 to 6 
7 to 9 
63-; to 7>o 






Ammonium sulphate 


■ 










3 to 5 
1 to 2 
11 to 14 
6 to 8 
lli to 2 








Tankage, bone 

Dried fish scrap 






2 to 3 







Table IL 

Phosphatic Manures. 





Pounds Per Hundred. 


ARTICLE 


Phosphoric Acid 


Nitrogen 




Available Insoluble 


Total 




... 26 to 2S 


26 to 28 
33 to 35 
13 to 16 
16 to 20 
20 to 25 
22 to 29 
15 to 17 




Florida phosphate rock . . . 


■ 33 to 35 

12 to 15 i 1 to 3 
14 to 16 1 1 to 4 

5 to 8 1 15 to 17 

6 to 9 ' 16 to 20 

13 to 15 1 2 to 3 












2'/^ to 4^ 




IH to2^^ 


Dissolved bone 


2 to 3 



USEFUL TABLES 



277 



COMPOSITION OF MANURES— Continued. 

Table IIL 
Potassic Manures. 



ARTICLF 


Pounds Per Hundred 




Potash 


Phosphoric 
Acid 


Lime 


Chlorine 




50 

48 to 52 

12 to 121^ 

16 to 20 

20 to 30 

2 to 8 

1 to 2 

5 to 8 






45 to 48 








H to lyi 








30 to 32 








42 to 46 




7 to 9 
1 to 2 
1 to 1}4 
3 to 5 


10 

30 to 35 

35 to 40 

3H 





















Table IV. 
Average Composition of Farm Manures. 



ARTICLE 


Pounds Per Hundred 




Moisture 


Nitrogen 


Phosphoric 
Acid 


Potash 


Lime 


Cow manure, fresh 

Horse manure 


85.3 
71.3 
64.6 
72.4 
56.0 
75.0 


0.38 
0.53 
0.83 
0.45 
1.63 
0.50 


0.16 
0.28 
0.23 
0.19 
0.54 
0.26 


0.36 
0.53 
0.67 
0.60 
0.85 
0.63 


0.31 
0.21 


Sheep manure 


0.33 
0.08 




0.24 


Mixed stable manure 


0.70 



278 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



FERTILIZER FORMULAS. 

Table V. 

Simply as guides the following are recommended for ordinary soil in 
fair condition: 

For Cotton: 

Cottonseed meal 300 lbs. 

Acid phosphate 1,400 lbs. 

Kainit 300 lbs. 

Use from 200 up to 800 pounds per acre. 

For Corn: 

Cottonseed meal 200 lbs. 

Acid phosphate 1,600 lbs. 

Kainit 200 lbs. 

Use 200 up to 1,000 pounds per acre. 

For Potatoes, Melons, etc.: 

Cottonseed meal 600 lbs. 

Acid phosphate 1,000 lbs. 

Kainit 400 lbs. 

Use 600 to 2,000 pounds per acre. 

For Small Grains and Grasses: 

Cottonseed meal 800 lbs. 

Acid phosphate 1,000 lbs. 

Kainit 200 lbs. 

Use 200 to 600 pounds per acre. 

The materials needed to make a ton of compost according to a good formula 
are as follows: 

Quick lime 100 lbs. 

Kainit 150 lbs. 

Acid phosphate (14 per cent.) 250 lbs. 

Cottonseed meal 200 lbs. 

Stable manure 1,200 lbs. 



Quick lime 100 lbs. 

Kainit 150 lbs. 

Acid phosphate (14 per cent.) 250 lbs. 

Green cottonseed 400 lbs. 

Stable manure 1.000 lbs. 



USEFUL TABLES 



279 



PLANT FOOD REMOVED BY CROPS. 

Table VI. 





Nitrogen 


Phos. Acid 


Potash 


One 500 pound bale of cotton removes: 

Lint 


1.22 
27.13 


.30 
9.00 


3.82 


Seed 


9.25 






Total 


28.35 

54.06 
41.06 


9.30 

21 
11.06 


13.07 


Fifty bushels of corn removes: 


12 


Stover 


56 






Total 


95.12 

20.25 
14.00 


32.06 

7.85 
3.00 


68 


Fifteen bushels of wheat removes: 
Grain 


5.6 


Straw 


12.5 






Total 


34.25 

19.2 
15.3 


10.85 

8.0' 
5.2 


18.1 


Thirty bushels of oats removes: 

Grain 


6.2 


Straw 


30.3 






Total 


34.5 


13.2 


36.5 







SAVING MANURE. 

The South loses thousands of dollars annually from the effect of burning stalks 
and stubble upon our lands. 2,000 pounds of com or cotton stalks make only fifty 
pounds of ashes, worth $10.00 per ton. As a decayed vegetable matter they would 
be worth at least $5.00. 

Stable manure left exposed to the weather four months, worth per ton at begin- 
ning $2.80, loss per ton $1.74. loss per cent. 62. 



280 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

PLANTING TABLES. 

Table VIL 
Amount of seed necessary to plant an acre {Henderson's "Gardening 
for Profif). 

Asparagus 4 to 5 pounds. 

Bean, dwarf in drills 2 bushels. 

Bean, pole in hills 10 to 12 quarts. 

Beet in drills 5 to 6 pounds. 

Cabbage in beds, to transplant . . . J^ pound. 

Carrot in drills 3 to 4 pounds. 

Com in hills 8 to 10 quarts. 

Corn (for soiling) 3 bushels. 

Cucumber in hills 2 to 3 pounds. 

Cress, water in drills 2 to 3 pounds. 

Cress, upland in drills 2 to 3 pounds. 

Kale, or sprouts 3 to 4 pounds. 

Mustard broadcast 3 to 4 pounds. 

Melon (musk) in hills 2 to 3 pounds. 

Melon (water) in hills 4 to 5 pounds. 

Onion (for sets) in drills 30 pounds. 

Onion in drills 5 to 6 pounds. 

Onion (sets) in drills 6 to 12 bushels. 

Parsnip in drills 4 to 6 pounds. 

Pea in drills 2 bushels. 

Pea broadcast 3 bushels. 

Potato (cut tubers) 10 to 12 bushels. 

Pumpkin in hills 4 to 6 pounds. 

Radish in drills 8 to 10 pounds. 

Sage in drills 8 to 10 pounds. 

Salsify in drills 8 to 10 pounds. 

Spinach in drills 10 to 12 pounds. 

Squash (running varieties) in hills 3 to 4 pounds. 

Squash (bush varieties) in hills 4 to 6 pounds. 

Tomato to transplant ^ pound. 

Turnip in drills 1 to 2 pounds 

Turnip broadcast 3 to 4 pounds. 

Barley broadcast 2 to 3 bushels. 

Broom com in hills 8 to 10 quarts. 

Clover (red), alone 15 to 20 pounds 

Clover (white), alone 12 to 15 pounds. 

Clover (Alsike), alone 8 to 10 pounds. 

Clover (Lucern), alone 20 pounds. 

Grass (mixed lawn) 4 to 5 bu-.hels. 

Oats broadcast 2 to 3 bushels. 

Rye. broadcast IH to 2 bushels. 

Vetches broadcast 2 to 3 bushels. 

Wheat broadcast IJ^ to 2 bushels. 

Timothy, alone H bushel. 

Orchard grass, mixture 4 to 5 bushels 

Millet J^ to 1 bushel. 



USEFUL TABLES 



281 



PLANTING TABLES— Continued. 

Table VIIL 

Number of Plants per Acre at Different Distances. 



DISTANCES. PLANTS. 

2 feet X 2 feet 10,890 

2 feet X 3 feet 7,260 

2 feet X 4 feet 5,445 

2 feet X 5 feet 4,356 

2 feet X 6 feet 3,630 

3 feet X 3 feet 4,840 

3 feet X 4 feet 3,630 

3 feet X 5 feet 2.904 

3 feet X 6 feet 2,420 

4 feet X 4 feet 2,722 

4 feet X 5 feet 2,178 

4 feet X 6 feet 1,185 

5 feet X 5 feet 1,742 

5 feet X 6 feet 1,452 

6 feet X 6 feet 1,210 

6 feet X 8 feet 907 



DISTANCES. PLANTS. 

8 feet X 8 feet 680 

8 feet X 10 feet 544 

10 feet X 10 feet 435 

10 feet X 12 feet 363 

10 feet X 15 feet 290 

10 feet X 18 feet 242 

10 feet X 20 feet 217 



20 feet X 20 feet. 
20 feet X 30 feet. 
30 feet X 30 feet. 
30 feet X 36 feet. 
40 feet X 40 feet. 
40 feet X 50 feet. 
40 feet X 60 feet. 
50 feet X 50 feet. , 



108 
72 
48 
40 
27 
21 
18 
17 



LEGAL OR CUSTOMARY WEIGHTS OF BUSHEL 
OF PRODUCE. 

Table IX. 



ARTICLES. POUNDS. 

Apples 48 

Apples, dried 26 

Beans, castor 60 

Beans, white 60 

Buckwheat 56 

Com, ear 70 

Com, shelled ' 56 

Com meal 50 

Onions 57 

Peaches 38 

Potatoes, Irish 60 

Potatoes, sweet 50 



ARTICLES. POUNDS. 

Peas 60 

Bluegrass seed 14 

Turnips 55 

Wheat 60 

Peanuts 28 

Cottonseed 32 

Bariey 48 



Rye 

Rutabagas . . 

Oats 

Clover seed. 



56 
60 
32 
60 



282 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



STOCK FOODS. 

Table X. 



Pounds of 

Fertilizing 

Constituents 

Per Ton 


Note — Protein is the food that 
forms muscle, milk, etc. Carbohy- 
drates and fat form the fat of the 
animal and give heat and energy. 


Digestible 
Nutrients in 
One Pound 
Expressed in 

Decimals 


Nutritive 
Ratio 


J3 
1 


u 

h 


c 
& 

e 

4-> 

6 
6 
10.6 


NAMES OF FEEDS 




M O 

Si 


to O 
11 .Q 


1 
3 

(U 

5 


0) 

P S'^ 


6 


3 

1.8 

5 


Green Fodders. 


.207 


.011 
.007 
.021 
.030 
.029 
.022 
.018 
.039 
.028 
.015 
.020 
.026 
.014 
.038 

.009 
.006 
.015 
.027 
.020 
.030 

.017 
.025 
.059 
.076 
.108 
.110 
.108 
.129 
.012 
.078 
.043 
.068 
.004 
.028 


.121 
.176 
.141 
.198 
.148 
.093 
.087 
.112 
.118 
.081 
.169 
.187 
.171 
.099 

.113 
.149 
.084 
.084 
.132 
.181 

.324 
.343 
.409 
.384 
.390 
.393 
.385 
.329 
.386 
.388 
.460 
.417 
363 
.431 


.004 
.012 
.004 
.008 
.007 
.004 
.002 
.004 
.006 
.002 
.004 
.010 
.006 
.007 

.007 
.002 
.009 
.013 
.010 
.019 

.007 
.012 
.012 
.020 
.011 
.012 
.015 
.031 
.008 
.004 
.015 
.030 
.004 
.014 


1:11.9 


5 




.206 
.234 


1:29 


14 




1:7.1 






.349 
.292 
.193 
.164 


1:7.2 


8 


3 


10.8 




1:5.6 






1:4.6 


6 


2 

2.6 
3 
3 


5.4 

14.4 

5.8 

9 




1:5 


11 2 


Alfalfa 


.282 


1:3.1 


10 6 




.285 
.140 


1:4.8 


7 2 




1:5.7 




Hungarian grass (German millet) . . 
Oat fodder 


.289 
.378 


1:8.4 








1:8.2 










.283 
.235 

.209 
.239 
.207 
.258 
.280 
.275 


1:13.2 










1:3 


74 


2 


5.2 


Ensilage. 


1:14.3 






1:25.6 










1:7 










1:4.3 


9.2 


2.6 


10.6 




1:7.9 




Alfalfa silage 


1:4.3 


28 


5.8 
10.8 
5.4 
7.6 
10.4 
10.2 
13.4 


20.2 

35.2 

28 

40 

53.2 

43.8 

46.4 


Hay and Dry Fodders. 


.595 
.578 


1:20 


17 8 




1:14.9 


31 




.871 
.847 
.893 


1:7.4 


44 




1:5.7 


29 4 




1:3.8 


SS 6 




.916 


1:3.8 


21 6 




.887 
.887 


1:3.9 




Vetch hay 


1:3.1 


35.4 


5.6 


9.2 




.908 


1:33.6 




Mixed vetch and oat hay 


.869 
.911 


1:5 










1:11.6 


19.6 


5.8 


35.2 




924 
.904 


1:7.2 






1:93 


18 


10.6 


25.2 




.868 


1:166 









USEFUL TABLES 
STOCK FOODS- Continued. 



283 



Pounds of 

Fertilizing 

Constituents 

Per Ton 



6.8 
7.6 
5.6 
10.2 
9.2 
8.6 
9.4 



7.4 
9.6 
9.6 
10 
10.8 
19.8 



9.4 
7 



19.8 



32.2 

11.8 

30 

20.4 
3.8 
3.2 
3.6 
3.6 






1.8 
1.8 
2 
1.8 

2.4 
2.2 
2.8 



11.4 
13.8 
15.8 
15.8 
16.4 
16.4 



12.6 
11.4 
11.2 



16.4 



57.8 

27 

60 
5 
4 

3.4 
2.8 
3.8 



31.6 

33 

30.2 

47.2 

35.2 

77.4 



31.6 

28.2 
57.8 



61.6 



53.4 
56.4 
130. 
13.8 
11.2 

9.6 

3 
10.6 



Note — Protein is the food that 
forms muscle, milk, etc. Carbohy- 
drates and fat form the fat of the 
animal and give heat and energy. 



NAMES OF FEEDS 



Root Crops, Etc. 

Turnips 

Mangel beets 

Sugar beets 

Carrots 

Irish potatoes 

Cabbages 

Artichokes 

Pvunpkins 

Grain and Other Seeds. 

Corn 

Oats 

Barley 

Wheat 

Rye 

Cowpeas 

Kaffir com 

Mill Products. 

Corn meal 

Com and cob meal 

Low grade flour 

Ground com and oats Tequal parts) 

Pea meal 

Oat meal 

By-Products. 

Wheat bran 

Wheat shorts 

Cottonseed meal 

Cottonseed hulls 

Skim milk 

Butter milk 

Whey 

Whole milk 



Digestible 

Nutrients in 

One Pound 

Expressed in 

Decimals 







1 

2 




>, 


V 


«4i 


v 


Qu 


^r. 


ap 


XI 










•S{1 


2ii 


KJii 


Ki 


H 


bo o 




5 


.095 


.010 


.061 


.002 


.091 


.011 


.054 


.001 


.135 


.011 


.102 


.001 


.114 


.008 


.078 


.002 


.316 


.012 


.241 




.153 


.018 


.081 


.004 


.200 


.020 


.168 


.002 


.091 


.010 


.058 


.003 


.891 


.080 


.659 


.046 


.890 


.092 


.473 


.042 


.891 


.087 


.656 


.016 


.895 


.102 


.688 


.017 


.884 


.099 


.673 


.011 


.878 


.200 


.532 


.008 


.875 


.058 


.536 


013 


.850 


.06,S 


.653 


.035 


.849 


.044 


.600 


.029 


.876 


.082 


.627 


.009 


.881 


.070 


.612 


.1,39 


.895 


.168 


.615 


.007 


.921 


.115 


.510 


.059 


.881 


.122 


.392 


.027 


.882 


.122 


.459 


.038 


.915 


.381 


.160 


.126 


.895 


.003 


.329 


.017 


.096 


.031 


.045 


.008 


.099 


.039 


.038 


.on 


.066 


.008 


.047 


.003 


.128 


.036 


.040 


*037 



Nutritive 
Ratio 



o.g 



1:7.7 

1:5.1 

1:9.4 

1:10.3 

1:20 

1:5.1 

1:8.7 

1:6.5 



1:9.6 

1:6.2 

1:8 

1:7.2 

1:7.1 

1:2.8 

1:9.8 



1:11.7 

1:15.1 

1:7.9 

1:8.7 

1:3 

1:5.7 



1:3.7 
1:4.8 
1:1.2 
1:125 
1:2.1 
1:1.7 
1:6.8 
1:3.6 



284 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



STOCK FOODS -Continued. 

Table XL 
Pounds of Food Required Per Day for 1,000 Pounds Live Weight. 



KIND OF ANIMAL 



Digestible 
Nutrients 



Oxen at rest in stall 

Oxen at moderate work 

Fattening cattle 

Milch cows: 

Giving IJ^ gallons milk 

Giving 2 gallons milk 

Giving 2}^ gallons milk 

Giving 3 gallons milk 

Sheep, wool-growing 

Sheep, fattening 

Horses, moderate work 

Horses, hard work 

Swine, fattening 

Swine, brood sows 

Growing Cottle: Average live 

Age in wt. per head 

months. Lbs. 

2-3 150 

3-6 300 

6-12 500 

12-18 700 

18-24 850 



18 
25 
28 



25 
27 
28 
32 

20 
29 
22 
26 
32 
22 



22 
23 
24 
24 
24 



0.7 
2.0 
2.7 



1.6 
2.0 
2.5 
3.3 

1.5 
3.0 
1.8 
2.5 
4.0 
2.5 



4.0 
3.0 
2.5 
2.0 
1.5 



0.1 
0.5 
0.6 



0.3 
0,4 
0.5 
0.8 

0.3 
0.6 
0.6 
0.8 
0.5 
0.4 



2.0 
1.0 
0.6 
0.4 
0.3 



8.0 
11.5 
15.0 



10.0 
11.0 
12.0 
13.0 

11.0 
15.0 
11.0 
13.3 
24.0 
15.4 



13.8 
13.5 
13.5 
13.0 
12.0 



1:11 8 
1: 6.5 
1: 6.1 



1: 6.0 

1: 53 

1: 4.5 

1: 7.8 

1: 5.5 

1: 6.9 

1: ?.0 

1: 6.3 

1: 6.6 



4.7 
5.3 
6.0 
7.0 
8.5 



USEFUL TABLES 



285 



HOW TO BALANCE A RATION. 



Calculate the total dry matter, protein, carbohydrates and fat in the feeds you 
desire to use, multiplying the figures in Table VIII by the number of pounds of the 
feed your experience and the inspection of its nutritive ratio suggest as a proper amount. 
Add the amounts of each nutrient and compare with the standard ration given in 
Table IX. . 

For example, if a cow gives about 23^ gallons of milk and it is proposed to feed 
■on cottonseed meal, wheat bran, cottonseed hulls and mixed hay, we might proceed 
as follows: 





Total 
Dry Matter 


Protein 


Carbo 

hydrates 


Fat 


3 pounds cottonseed meal 


2.745 

7.048 

17.900 

4.355 


1.143 
0.976 
0.060 
0.295 

2.474 
2.5 


0.480 
3.132 
6.580 
2.045 

12.237 
12.0 


0.384 
216 


20 pounds cottonseed hulls 

5 pounds hay 


0.340 
060 








33.048 
28.0 


1 00 




05 







This ration is therefore excessive in total dry matter, carbohydrates and fat, 
while the protein is slightly below the standard. It can be remedied by using four 
pounds cottonseed meal, six pounds bran and three pounds hay. 



286 AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

STOCK FOODS— Continued. 
Table XII. 

Specimen Balanced Rations for Cow Giring 2J^ Gallons Milk Per Day. 

No. 1. 

25 pounds hay. 

3 pounds cottonseed meal. 

2J^ pounds wheat bran. 

1}4 pounds com meal. 
(2 pounds corn and cob meal can be^substituted for 
corn meal.) 

No. 2. 

Cottonseed meal .■ 4 pounds. 

Com ensilage 40 pounds. 

Pea hay 15 pounds. 

No. 3. 

Cottonseed meal 4 pounds. 

Wheat bran 6 pounds. 

Com stover 30 pounds. 

No. 4. 

Cottonseed meal 4 pounds. 

Wheat bran 6 pounds. 

Cottonseed hulls 20 pounds. 

Mixed hay 3 pounds. 

No. 5. 

Wheat bran 6 pounds. 

Cottonseed, whole 6 pounds. 

Mixed clover and grass, or pea and sorghum 

hay 20 pounds. 

Farmers' Bulletin 22, which can be procured from the Secretary of Agriculture, 
Washington, D. C, or by request addressed to your Congressman.fcontains full feed- 
ng tables and directions for calculating rations.^ Every farmer should get it. 



USEFUL TABLES 287 



WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 

Table XIIL 

Troy Weight. 
(Used by Jewelers.) 

L-4 grains 1 pennyweight. 

20 pennyweights 1 ounce. 

12 ounces 1 pound. 

A pothecaries' Weight. 
(Used in weighing medicines.) 

20 grains 1 scruple. 

3 scruples 1 drachm. 

8 drachms 1 ounce. 

12 ounces 1 pound. 

Avoirdupois Weight. 
(Used in ordinary commercial transactions.) 

27.34 grains 1 drachm. 

16 drachms 1 ounce. 

16 ounces 1 pound. 

2,000 pounds 1 ton. 

Long Measure. 

12 inches 1 foot. 

3 feet 1 yard. 

5H yards 1 rod, pole or perch. 

40 rods 1 furlong. 

8 furlongs 1 statute or^landlmile. 

3 miles 1 league. 

Square or Land Measure. 

144 square inches 1 square^ foot. 

9 square feet 1 square' yard. 

30H square yards 1 square^rod. 

40 square rods 1 rood. 

4 roods 1 acre. 

640 acres 1 square'mile. 

Liquid Measure. 

4 gills 1 pint — 28.875 cubic inche , 

2 pints 1 quart — 57.75 cubic inche 

4 quarts 1 gallon — 231 cubic inche' 

63 gallons 1 hogshead. 

2 hogsheads 1 pipe or butt. 

2 pipes 1 tun. 

Dry Measure, 

2 pints 1 quart. 

4 quarts 1 gallon. 

2 gallons 1 peck. 

4 pecks 1 struck bushe 1 . 



288 



AGRICULTURE FOR THE COMMON SCHOOLS 



WEIGHTS AND MEASURES— Continued. 
Table XIV. 

The Metric System of Weights and Measures. 

Metric Units in English Equivalent«: 

Inches. Feet. Yards. 

Centimeter 0.393685 0.032807 

Decimeter 3.93685 0.328071 0.109357 

Meter 39.3685 3.28071 1.09357 

Decameter 393.685 32.8071 10.9357 

Hectometer 328.071 109.357 

KUometer 3280.71 1093.57 

Myriameter 32807.1 10935.7 

Are — 154.988 sq. in., 1,076.4 sq. ft., 119.60 sq. yds., 0.0247 acres. 

Hectare— 107,640 sq. ft., 11,960 sq. yds., 2.471 acres. 

Liter— 33.8 fluid ounces, 1.0567 liquid quarts, 0.02838 bushels. 

Gram — 15.43234 grains, 0.03527 ounces avoir., 0.0022 lbs. avoir. 

Kilogram — 2.2 lbs. avoir. 

Foot — 0.3048 meters, 3.048 decimeters, 30.48 centimeters. 

Mile — 1,609.344 meters, 1.609344 kilometers. 

Acre — 40.4685 ares, 0.4047 hectares. 

Gallon— 3.7854 liters. 

Pound — 0.4536 kilograms, 4.536 hectograms. 

Ton (2,000 lbs.)— 907.1 kilograms, 0.9071 tonneau. 

Bushels— 35.237 liters. 



Miles. 



0.0G21347 
0.6213466 
6.213466 



Table XV. 
A Cubic Foot is Equal to 

1728 cubic inches. 

0.8036 struck bushels of 2150.42 cubic inches. 

3.2143 pecks. 

7.4805 liquid gallons of 231 cubic inches. 

6.4285 dry gallons. 
29.922 liquid quarts. 
25.714 dry quarts. 
59.844 liquid pints. 
51.428 dry pints. 

0.2667 barrel of three struck bushels. 

0.2375 liquid barrel of 31 H gallons. 



USEFUL TABLES 289 

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES-Continued. 

Table XVI. 

A Few Interesting Facts. 
One bushel of wheat contains about 320,000 grains. 
One bushel of oats contains about 540,000 grains. 
One bushel of cottonseed contains about 125,000 seeds. 
Wheat roots will grow in good ground from six to eight feet deep. 
Corn roots will grow in good ground from eight to ten feet deep. 
Clover roots will grow in good ground from ten to twelve feet deep. 
Alfalfa roots will grow in good ground from twelve to eighteen feet deep. 
Oats will grow in good ground from eight to ten feet deep. 
Common grass will grow in good ground three to four feet deep. 
The following yields per acre have been made, and can be made again: 

Corn 255 bushels. 

Wheat 80 bushels. 

Oats 125 bushels. 

Barley 80 bushels. 

Buckwheat 75 bushels. 

Potatoes 1329 bushels. 

Turnips 1200 to 1500 bushels. 

Mangels 80 tons. 

Timothy 6 tons at a cutting. 

Bermuda grass 6 tons at a cutting. 

Red clover 5}4 tons at a cutting. 



USTDEX 



Agriculture, History of, 7-10; import- 
ance of, 1-3; as a science, 4-7; 
teaching, V-VIII, 9-10; teaching, 
apparatus used in, X; teaching, 
references for, 275. 

Bees, Honey, 240. 
Bird Life, 245. 
Blackberries, 173. 
Breeding (see Plant). 

Canning, Clubs for girls, 256. 

Compost, 97 (see Manures). 

Co-operation in Agriculture, 253; boys' 
com clubs, 254; girls' canning 
clubs, 256; pig clubs, 260; poultry 
clubs, 259; score cards, 263-268. 

Corn, boys' clubs, 256; food values of, 
282; harvesting, 131; plant food 
removed by, 279; score card for, 
264; silage, 137; "Song," 153; 
large yields, 146, 152. 

Cotton, baling, 133; boll weevil, 185; 
breeding, 157; harvesting, 132; 
plant food removed by, 279; picking 
machine, 69, 132; score card for, 
263; large yields of, 148, 152. 

Cultivation, of crops, 121; depth of, 
122; and disease, 126; and dust 
mulch, 125; implements for, 55, 
56, 62-65; object of, 57; time for, 
58, 121, 123; "Tull Theory" of. 
124. 

Dairy farming, 205; vs. beef cattle, 208; 

butter, 212; cows, feeding, 208; 

feeding tables, 282-286; milk 

bacteria, 210; milk fat, 210; milk 

food, 214; milk products, 214; 

ropy milk, 212; milk sampling, 

212; milk souring, 211. 
Drainage, 28-30, 34-37; cost of. 36; 

effects of, 35. 



Farmers, as citizens, 272; conveniences 
for, 270; and health, 269; homes, 
273; home dairies; opportunities of, 
269. 

Feeding tables, 282-286. 

Fertilizers, composition of, 276; com- 
plete, 91; distinguished from ma- 
nures, 90, 93-96; distribution of, 
276; formulas, calculating, 108; 
formula tables, 278; guano, 92; 
Home mixing of, 106; ingredients 
to use, 104-106; sources of nitro- 
gen, 110; test plots for, 112-115. 



Fruit culture, 175; budding, 178; 

cuttings, 183; grafting, 180. 
Fungi, 193 (see plant diseases). . 

Grain, food value of, 282; harvesting, 
128; plant food removed by, 279; 
large yields, 150, 152. 

Guano (see fertilizers). 

Harrows, 64, 65. 

Harvesting corn, 131; cotton, 132; 
grain, 128; potatoes, 136; sweet 
potatoes, 134; silage, 137. 

Heat and cultivation, 121; and moist- 
ure, 28. 

Hot beds, 228. 

Implements, 61-65; care of, 70; cot- 
ton picking, 69; cultivators, 62; 
relation to skilled labor, 71, 72; 
plows, 62; for tillage, 53. 

Irrigation, 38; three methods of, 39. 



Lime, and the Soil, 31-33. 

Live stock (see also Dairy), beef vs. 
dairy cattle, 208; breeding up, 199; 
cattle, 200; classes of, 195; feeding, 
198; feeding tables, 282-286; 
hogs, 201; hog clubs, 260; hog 
score card, 265, 266; and man, 195, 
203; and manures, 87, 196; sheep, 
202. 



Manures, animal, 90; applying. 98- 
100; compost, 97; composition 
of, 276; definition of, 83, 90; 
distinguished from fertilizers, 83, 
90, 93-96; green, 88; and live 
stock, 87; saving, 86, 279; and the 
soil, 84; testing value of, 113. 

Measures and weights, 287-289. 

Moisture (see soil, and water). 

Moon's influence on crops, 119. 



Nature Study, 237; birds and insects, 
246-249; bird life, 245; bird mi- 
gration, 250; bird song, 251; 
bumblebee, 243; Honey bee, 240; 
methods and objects, 238; toad, 
241. 



Pests, classes, 184; cabbage worm, 
189; codling moth, 187; cotton 
boll weevil. 185; curculio, 186; 



INDEX 



291 



cut worm, 189; fungi (see plant 
disease); grain weevil, 187; gypsy 
moth, 190, 191; harlequin bug, 
193; plant lice, 192; potato bug, 
189; San Jose scale, 192; twig 
girdler, 188. 

Plants, parts of, 74; flowers of, 81; 
leaves, SO; roots, 75; stems, 79. 

Plant breeding, by crossing, 161; in 
cotton, 157, and disease, 158; 
history of, 160; by selection, 155; 
test plots, 158; variation in, 157. 

Plant Diseases (see also pests), and 
cultivation, 126; fungi, 193; and 
selection, 1.58. 

Plant food in crops, 279. 

Planting, or seeding, 116; bedding for, 
117; fertilizing, 117; and the 
moon, 119; preparation for, 116; 
seeds, 118; tables, 280,281; time 
for, 119. 

Plowing. 54, 62. 

Potatoes, harvesting, 136. 

Poultry, 217; care of, 220; clubs, 259; 
dual-purpose, 219; egg-type, 217; 
feeding, 221; fancy, 219; meat 
breeds, 218; raising, 223; score 
cards. 267, 268; utility, 220. 



Raspberries, 171. 
Roots, 75. 

Rotation, advantages, 140; defined, 
139; planning, 140-144. 



School Gardening, 225; care of plots, 
231; cold-frames and hotbeds, 



228; flowers, 233-236; planting, 
227; size of, 227; young plants, 
2.30. 

Seeds in hotbeds, 228; planting, 116; 
planting tables, 280, 281. 

Silage, 137. 

Soil, beauty of, 43; color and tempera- 
ture, 30; cultivating, 121-126; 
drainage, 28-30, 34-37; elements, 
16, 17; formation, 11-13; forma- 
tion agencies, 14, 15; irrigation, 
38; kinds of. 18-21; and lime. 
31-33; and literature, 43; and ma- 
nures, 84; capillary moisture, 26; 
hygroscopic water, 26; moisture 
and temperature, 28, 35, possession 
of, 47; temperature and culture, 
121; texture, 31; tilling, 51; water 
holding capacity, 22-25. 

Strawberries, 171. 

Sweet Potatoes, harvesting, 134. 



Tillage, 51; implements for, 53; "is 
Manure," 124. 

Tomatoes, 173. 

Truck Farming, 163; fertilizers and 
tillage, 166; location, 165; market 
gardening, 164; quality vs. quanti- 
ty, 166; raspberries, 171; straw- 
berries, 171; tomatoes, 173; what 
crops, 167, 171-173; yields, 150. 

Water and humus, 25-27 (see also 
soil moisture). 

Weights per bushel, 281; and measures, 
287-289. 

Yields, large, 145, 289; of com, 146; 
of cotton, 148; of grain, 150; sugges- 
tions for, 152; of truck, 150, 166. 



DEC 



1913 



